Brother
by shalanar
Summary: All Sasuke ever wanted when he was younger was his brother's acceptance, but instead he was ignored and then betrayed. His goal now is to kill and completely forget about the older Uchiha, but will Itachi let him? Pairing: Itachi x Sasuke. COMPLETE
1. Prologue

I've been itching to write an ItaSasu for a while now and finally got around to it after composing the first couple paragraphs in my head at work. (yes, I write fanfic at work, but only after I do my work) This is just the prologue and doesn't really get into the story. Right now, it's more the bitter ramblings in Sasuke's head. It will hopefully become more exciting soon. Be prepared to be hit by a barrage of 'you's. 'gives out complimentary umbrellas'

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Prologue

I hate you.

You who took everything and gave nothing. I had always looked up to you. You were my role model, and I strived to be like you, so that you could be proud of having such a talented little brother. To you I was too small and insignificant to even be acknowledged as part of the clan. Was I not important enough to be killed along with the rest of them?

All I ever wanted was to have your acceptance. I tried to get close, but you always pushed me away. You were supposed to be my older brother, but when I was with you it was like we were strangers. I'll admit that I was jealous with all the attention you got. Becoming an ANBU leader at such a young age was quite an accomplishment worthy of praise, but you didn't seem to care. You were always so distant, lost in your own thoughts and ambitions. Maybe that's what made you strong. But could it truly hurt to open up, just a little, to me?

That's why I was mad when you got close to Shisui. What made him so special, that you would give your attention—the attention that I so desperately wanted—so freely to him? I was so angry and envious of your bond that I would sit in bed at night cursing Shisui and wishing him dead. I knew it was wrong, and I felt guilty when news arrived of Shisui's suicide drowning.

What surprised me was the others accusing you, my perfect brother. To me, I felt I was the guilty one because of my evil thoughts towards Shisui. It was sick, but a part of me was happy he was gone. I never believed for a second that the others had any reason to be suspicious of you. You were my idol, and you would not hurt anyone close to you. That naïve perception only proved how little I knew you.

If you would only let me past that hard and cold exterior, maybe I could have foreseen your violent actions. Maybe I could have helped stop you, make you understand how important the clan was. But you never gave me the chance, and on that night you killed me. You didn't slaughter me physically like everyone else. What you destroyed was that childish innocence, that naive belief that the world was a wonderful place, and that you were a wonderful brother.

I was so stupid.

You told me to hate you. And I tried. I could verbally say that I hated you. I felt rage when I thought about you, about what you had done and all the things you never did. I wanted to run up to you and tear you to shreds, screaming at all the emotional injustices you had put me through. Despite all this, the true anger lay in my inability completely hate you with the emotions I carried inside. You saw that, and pointed out that weakness. If only I was strong enough to overcome it.

And now it's because of you that I'm going to this long-tongued creep in order to gain enough power to kill you. Maybe then you'd finally notice me, maybe then I could finally learn to hate. You, my once beloved brother, have transformed into an obsession that I am trapped in. I will never be free until I accomplish my purpose. I will force my love to hate; I will force you to your knees so you can look upon the face of the younger brother that you neglected and hurt. Then I will kill you, wipe you out of existence, and liberate myself from your image that is constantly burned in my mind.

Itachi.

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Um…yeah…not all that exciting yet. But hang in there! I promise it will become better! 


	2. Learn to Hate

Chapter one. Was going to be longer, but I have so many stories to keep up with I figured I it was as good enough time as any to end the chapter and update.

**kawaii kitsune-kun** – I completely agree with you. There definitely needs to be more Uchihacest in the fanfic/fanart world.

**Patty** – I decided I wanted to try out 1st person P.O.V., since I hadn't written in it for a while. I'm still not sure whether it's going to be totally Sasuke's point of view or whether I'll also do some Itachi.

**narroch06** – I'm trying to stay somewhat true to his character, because I do tend to go OOC a lot.

**The Theif Kuronue** – Hehehe…..

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Chapter One: Learn to Hate

The forest was deadly quiet. I looked around warily. Usually the eerie silence indicated another presence nearby, but I sensed no one. My shoulder throbbed and I rubbed at the spot where the cursed seal was branded into my skin. This was my payment for the power that I would soon gain. I acted so cold and confident when I declared that I was going to Orochimaru to seek power. In truth, I was scared shitless of what he would do to me. Regardless of the consequences, no matter what price, it was a sacrifice I was willing to make in order to reach that higher level. I was still weak. I needed more power.

The unnerving feeling of being watched crept down my spine. So my suspicions regarding the silent forest were well founded. I wasn't too concerned. Despite not being strong enough to face up to Orochimaru or my brother, I could hold my own in a fight involving others. Regardless of the threat, I slid my fingers around the comforting warm steel of my kunai.

It was mid-autumn and the fiery leaves drifted gracefully in the wind before coming to rest on the forest floor. I stopped walking and stood, staring straight ahead. I didn't have time to play games.

"Come out. I know you're there."

No response but the wind blowing past me and up into the trees, causing more leaves to be cast into the air. Annoyed, I continued on. If they were going to stay out of sight, then they had better keep it that way. I was not going to get involved in a game of hide-and-seek.

The back of my neck prickled and I slid my sharigan on, whirling around and expecting to find no one there. What I ended up seeing shocked me so much that I just stood there, dumbfounded for a few seconds.

"As I suspected. Still so weak," stated a voice that I had not heard for a long time, and that I didn't want to hear for some time yet. My stomach felt like it was beginning to boil.

My mouth didn't have time to form words as he strode up to me, standing less than a foot away. Itachi.

"Well? Don't you have something to say for yourself?" My brother, my constant loathing obsession, was standing before me, mocking my surprise.

I felt the rage inside me swell and I lunged at him, brandishing my kunai and wanting to inflict as much damage on him as possible. I was sent hurtling back as he simply took his two fingers and pushed me away. I went skidding across the ground, and lay there, stunned for a few seconds before slowly rising to my feet again. He had hardly touched me and I had still been sent flying several feet. I was not ready to face this, but it appeared I had no choice. My sheer determination would see me through, because I would not allow myself to die while my brother still lived.

The childish means in which he threw me back only angered me more. He would constantly poke his fingers at my forehead when he didn't want to acknowledge my attempts to spend time with him. Even now, I wasn't worth his time. If that was true, then why the hell did he follow me in the first place? I snarled and ran back up to him, determined to at least get a blow in.

I was stopped when I reached him by his hand moving around my throat and squeezing it so tightly that I gagged. I clawed and struggled, but his grip did not lessen.

"Not enough hate."

I loathed those words. Those were the words that he constantly said to point out my failing weakness, and predispose me as the loser. Never did he ever take me seriously. I wanted to be able to prove myself to him, but both he and I knew that I still did not have the strength, nor the sufficient hate. He didn't release his hold, even after I had stopped struggling and glared at him in the eyes. Itachi looked steadily back at me without blinking.

"I am here to tell you not to touch Naruto," he stated, not breaking his gaze with my furious one.

"He's the one that came after me," I snarled, "And I'll do whatever the bloody hell I want!"

His fingers tightened dramatically and I began to choke, my knuckles white with trying to pry his hand off.

"Naruto is far more valuable than you. Remember that. If you make a move to try and harm the boy, then I'm afraid your little game will be over."

"Game?" I narrowed my eyes. This was not a game. I did not dedicate my entire life to a game.

Gradually, his hold on me lightened, and I gasped as welcome air filled my lungs.

"As always, you are a fool, little brother." Once again he poked me in the forehead, and turned to walk away.

I was not going to let him go so fast. I ran and lunged at him. In a movement too quick for me to register, even with my sharigan, he whirled around and pinned me to a tree.

"What were you planning to do when you reached me?" he questioned, leaning in and regarding me with an unnerving gaze.

"Kill you," I spat, kicking out at him. It seemed to do nothing and his hold on me didn't loosen.

A sadistic smirk of amusement grew across my brother's face, angering me even more. Stop mocking me dammit!

"You will never gain enough power to kill me until you let go of your other feelings. Admit it brother, you haven't the heart to kill me."

"I do so!" I screamed, struggling in his grasp, my eyes blazing in anger.

"You do not," he whispered, and I was shocked as he leaned in and lightly brushed his lips against my own, slowly deepening the kiss. He pulled away and examined me critically.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" I yelled, my cheeks flushed and my heart racing so fast in my chest that I was sure it would explode from the exertion. How dare he do that, invade my personal space and then... My head was buzzing from what had happened.

"Could you really kill me?" Itachi asked evenly, as if nothing had happened.

I shook as I watched him move away. I wanted to shove my kunai right into his chest and drive it through his heart, but my fist still remained at my side, shaking and tightening uselessly against the kunai's handle.

Satisfied, my brother turned and walked away again. I slumped at the base of the tree, watching through hazy red eyes as he left.

Once again, I had failed.

I cursed and kicked the tree in frustration, trying to ignore the tingling in my lips. He still treated me like a little helpless kid. It angered me so much because I knew I wasn't strong enough to prove him wrong. My attacks had been completely useless, and I could hardly defend myself, much less put a scratch on him. It all boiled down to that I just wasn't good enough.

I bit my lip hard and forced the pessimistic thoughts out of my head. I just wasn't good enough _yet_. I would be. I would be. I kept reassuring myself of this as I punched the tree in front of me repeatedly, envisioning the trunk as my brother's tall lean figure. The wood splintered and I turned away, massaging my fist. How dare he play with my mind! He had scarred me mentally enough, just what was he thinking, kissing me like that?

Yet my brother had made a point that I couldn't ignore. Even if I went to Orochimaru, and got the power to kill Itachi, would I be able to do it? I kept telling myself confidently that I could, but when faced with the opening, I couldn't even lift my kunai after what he had done. In order to kill my brother, I had to kill all past sentimental feelings that were rooted within me from when I was a child.

Power was nothing without direction. That was my weakness. In the end, that would be the deciding factor: hate. I had to master that before I could even think of moving on to anything else. Turning away from the direction I had been heading, towards Orochimaru, I walked the path that Itachi had disappeared down.

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And off Sasuke goes on his (failing) quest to crush his unwanted sentimental feelings towards his brother. Hi-ho! 


	3. Between Love and Hate

Kids, take a good whiff of that lemony-fresh scent and back away. Failing to do so may be hazardous to your health. Perverts and fangirls who are immune to the scent may feel free to inhale its yaoi-ish goodness.

Sasuke, Itachi, and other such entities of sexiness are not owned by me, but if I could get my hands on them, I would be a very happy fangirl.

**kawaii kitsune-kun** – Wow. When I had initially read your review, I didn't think that there would be a lemon this early on. But as I wrote, the story progressed much faster than I had expected (and the chapter longer), so you may have gotten your wish.

**Patty** - That's a very interesting question. I think it has to do with Itachi not wanting to take any risks concerning that situation. Sasuke certainly hasn't gained enough strength for Itachi to acknowledge him as a rival, but he has that potential. I think a more deeply rooted meaning is that he knows how powerful Kyuubi is inside of Naruto, and doesn't want Sasuke to end up dead in a fight because of it. He didn't spare his younger brother's life only to have him killed meddling in Akatsuki's affairs. All in all, he's being cautious.

**lunatic heretic** – It's one of my guilty pleasures as well.

**myworld101** – Thank you. :)

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Chapter 2: Between Love and Hate

My brother left no trail. I thought I had lost him until I nearly stumbled into the clearing where he was standing. I quickly took cover in some bushes on the fringe and listened into the conversation before me. Itachi was talking with someone dressed in the same black robes with red clouds. This other had oddly blue skin and appeared almost shark-like. Over his shoulder was slung what looked like a large club wrapped tightly in bandages. He was in the middle of speaking when I arrived.

"—reunion went well did it?" He grinned, his dagger-like fangs gleaming in the light.

My brother said nothing in response to this and instead changed the subject. "I am going to travel alone for a short while."

The other shrugged, yet still looked slightly curious. "You haven't forgotten about Naruto, have you?"

Itachi shook his head. "There is plenty of time for that yet. Besides, the organization has shifted their focus elsewhere for the time being." He raised his hand to stop the other nin from speaking. "Now is not the time to discuss it. The forest holds many unwelcome eyes and ears."

My breathing stopped as I thought I saw his eyes dart to my hiding place, but it was gone so quickly that I was sure I must have imagined it.

"Fine. So I guess I'll see you when I see you."

"Not a moment sooner," stated Itachi, turning away. "Try to keep your recklessness under control."

The man laughed. "I'll see you later."

I silently slipped away from the bushes and moved as quickly and quietly as I could around the perimeter of the clearing, trying to make sure I didn't loose sight of my brother as he left it without another word. Wherever Itachi was going, he wasn't in too much of a hurry. Once I had gotten used to trailing him, I started to find his pace rather slow and monotonous.

He didn't once look around to check for any signs of danger, or even to see if he was being followed. Then again, if he was as powerful as I believed, there most likely weren't many that could stand against him regardless. I crushed that sinking feeling the second it hit and continued on. The whole point of this detour was to observe my brother and pick up on any possible weakness, as well as an opportunity to heighten my hatred.

Itachi walked without stopping for several hours, and I was becoming nervous as I noticed the trees starting to thin out. If we reached the end of the forest, then I wasn't sure if I could remain hidden and continue to follow my brother. Thankfully, Itachi stopped walking under a tall oak and began to gather rocks and branches for a fire. Making a few casual hand movements and blowing gently on the twigs, they caught alight and he soon had a crackling fire.

My brother sat by it, staring into the flames expressionlessly, and pulled out something wrapped up out of his robes. Silently, he ate his meal while I crouched once again in some bushes, watching his every movement. His eyes never once strayed from the fire, and he appeared to be deep in thought.

My legs were starting to cramp up under me, but I dared not shift them in case I made some noise to give my position away. I wondered when Itachi would go to sleep. The thought crossed my mind to attack him in his sleep and kill him, like he undoubtedly did with much of our clan the night of the massacre. I rejected the thought immediately. That was a coward's way to kill; I wanted to be face to face with my brother when the time came. He would acknowledge my skill with his last dying breath.

"You're going to be hungry if you don't eat."

My heart stopped dead in my chest. Itachi was staring straight at me, as if there weren't branches and leaves concealing me from view. I didn't move, feeling like a deer caught in headlights. His gaze didn't waver, and I was absolutely certain he knew exactly where I was.

"Stand up. You're making a fool of yourself crouching in those bushes."

Glaring angrily, I stood, revealing myself to him. There was no point in hiding when he knew where I was.

"Why did you follow me?" his smooth voice questioned.

I stood stubbornly, refusing to answer.

It didn't seem like he required one anyway, and he smirked at my scowl. "You think that by following me, you'll learn how to become heartless enough to kill?" His eyes glittered from the flames. "Or did you follow me simply because you could not keep away?"

I bit my tongue to keep from snapping out at him, and stood there angrily, not moving a muscle. My eyes were locked on his in a death-glare.

Itachi looked thoughtful for a moment. "I could cause you so much pain right now. With just a glance I can force you to endure the worst moments of your life for as long as I please." His smirk widened when I didn't look away. "But it seems that will not be necessary. You are good enough at doing that on your own."

My lip curled back in a snarl. He was right, at that moment all that was flashing through my head under the rage was broken memories playing over and over, conjured up by the old familiar sight of my brother.

"Step out of the bushes, Sasuke. You look foolish."

I glared and found myself moving out into the tiny clearing. Itachi smirked in satisfaction as I stood before him.

"You're still quite the runt."

"WHAT!" My cheeks flared up in anger, and I shook as I stood in front of him. He was having fun toying with me, and I was furious that I was letting him get away with it.

"Come here."

"No."

"Come. Here." His voice was softer, but there was a menacing quality that demanded perfect obedience on penalty of death.

I walked over, still scowling. I was wrapped around his little finger and he was loving every minute of it. He reached up gently cupped my chin as I stood before his sitting form, tilting it down so he could examine my sharigan.

"Have you really only progressed that far? How disappointing."

My fist instantly few out to hit him. He didn't even flinch as he caught it in his hand, twisting it around and causing me to cry out in pain.

"Stop acting childish. You know you are not ready to face me."

Once again, I refused to speak to him. I hated this feeling of helplessness. My peers in Kohana viewed me as a prodigy, absolutely flawless in skill and intelligence. But when I stood before my brother, compared to his achievements, his power, I was a laugh.

"Sit."

I was like his obedient pet, and it sickened me as I sat. I should be defying him with every last ounce of my strength, but I found my body reacting to his orders before I could think. I knew he could sense my displeasure. He brought his hand into his robes and I tensed. He pulled out a small foil packet and tossed it at me. I caught it in my hand and examined it.

"Eat it."

"How do I know it's not poisoned?" I narrowed my eyes.

My brother chuckled. "My dear Sasuke, if I had wanted to kill you, don't you think I've had plenty of opportunity? Don't start feeling too safe, however. If you rub me the wrong way I will kill you in an instant." He looked at me and I could tell by the seriousness of his eyes that he was not joking.

Bitterly, I opened the package. It was some sort of ration food that was made so that it wouldn't go bad for a very long time. I tried it, expecting something akin to the taste of cardboard, but it was surprisingly good. I don't remember eating in quite a while, since I was so focused on getting to Orochimaru's before anyone else could come after me. I finished eating and tossed the foil into the fire where it blackened and shriveled up until it was completely devoured by the flame.

"You knew I was following you the entire time."

"I knew you would. You're incredibly predictable."

I growled. "Just what exactly do you mean?"

"Orochimaru knew long before you did that you would end up seeking him out. I knew that you wouldn't be able to resist diverting your path the instant you ran into me. Ever since you were young, you've always followed me around like an annoying little shadow. You haven't grown all that much."

I growled. "How do you know about Orochimaru's thoughts? I could've continued to travel towards him rather than come here to be mocked by you."

Itachi shook his head. "You will always come back to me, because that is all you know how to do. I am the center of your universe, and you can only stray so far before you become pulled back to me."

"That's a lie!"

"Is it?" He arched his eyebrow at me. "Your utmost goal in life is to avenge your clan by killing me, correct?"

I was silent.

"And what will you do if you succeed? What will be your driving purpose then?"

I had never really thought about what I would do after I succeeded in killing Itachi. I figured it was best to take things one step at a time, and concentrate all my energies on becoming strong enough to finish the first goal. His death would not be the end of the road for me; rather, I saw it as a new beginning with me being stronger and more accomplished than before.

Still, a little part of me asked what would act as my measure of power. Itachi was the constant reminder of how weak I was, and indicated that I had a long way to go. Once he was gone, I truly wouldn't have the same strive to become better, faster. Still, there was no reason I would need to. I was sure the satisfaction of accomplishing my life's goal would be adequate, and in doing so I would be strong enough anyway. In thinking that, I realized that my brother really was my driving force to improve.

Itachi smirked, knowing that he had gotten his point across. I turned my head away, refusing to look at him. Taking my chin once again, he turned my gaze back. I felt a sudden warmth and for a second and thought that I might have caught on fire. Then I realized the warmth was concentrated around my lips and broke away from Itachi with a gasp.

"Will you stop fucking doing that!" I yelled, scuttling back a little and not getting very far as he leaned over and blocked by escape.

Itachi grinned sadistically as he looked down on me. "With the way you look at me, you'd think you were begging for it."

I growled and my stomach did a little flip-flop as his hand teasingly traced over it.

"What the hell do you think you're playing at?" I said in a deadly voice, squirming away, but with his weight on my legs I couldn't get very far.

"You always got so jealous when you saw me with someone else. Always those eyes, begging and pleading to me—"

"That was then."

"They haven't changed a bit."

I opened my mouth to retort but his lips had cut me off. He pulled away and kept me silent with his finger.

"If you hate this so much, then why don't you stop me?"

"I can't yet."

"You're not even trying."

"I can't move."

"Because you're weak."

"I AM NOT WEAK!"

I shoved my brother with all my strength, and it moved him just enough for me to slip out. I stood, panting and glaring at him while he stared up at me from the ground. A smirk once again played across his lips.

"You exist for me."

"I exist for no one but myself!" I exclaimed, feeling the heat in my cheeks as I yelled.

Itachi chuckled, and the sound made my spine tingle. "I gave you life by sparing your life. I gave you a direction, a purpose. By always being that one step ahead of you, I have driven you to push yourself beyond your limits and perform at your maximum potential. And as the source of your strength I am also contrastingly the source of your weakness. Isn't that right, little brother?"

I shivered as he sat up, twining his arms around my waist and letting his fingers play across the small of my back. This wasn't what I wanted. I wanted to kill him. I wanted to avenge myself and my clan for what he had done. I wanted to take back the small moan that escaped through my traitorous lips as his head brushed against my crotch.

"Stop! No!" My fingers dug into his hair as he began to undo my pants(1).

He paused, briefly, to look up at me. My fingers had dug so tightly into his hair that I was beginning to pull some out. He never broke his gaze as his hand wandered up my inner thigh, rubbing teasingly around the front of my pants, encouraging my forming erection. I bit my bottom lip and a trickle of blood ran down, which he leaned up and licked away.

"You complain but you do nothing," observed my brother.

Clearing up my foggy senses, I realized that he was right. He only had one arm looped lightly around my waist, while the other one was rubbing and groping me. He was right there; I could easily kick out and make a dash for it. I doubted I would be successful, but still, I was surprised I hadn't even tried.

Even as I thought this I further realized that I still wasn't trying. The hands I used to attempt to push Itachi's away from my highly aroused area were weak and ineffective. Did I really enjoy the feelings he was awakening in me? I had to kill him; I was becoming distracted. A firm grope caused me to gasp and my head clouded up again as I focused on the intensely pleasing sensation it caused.

Maybe this would let Itachi's guard down and leave an opening. While he was busy with what he was doing, he would become less focused on defending himself and I could use that to my advantage. Now I was just making excuses to justify why I wasn't acting on my protests. This was wrong, it was counterproductive, and I hated my brother. I hated how gorgeous his eyes and hair looked with the firelight flickering off it, and the way he caused this sensational pleasure to erupt unbidden out of me into tiny gasps and moans.

I was the one at his mercy, not him. As much as I disagreed this should not have been happening, I didn't have the will to make it stop. All my life I craved to have him look at me and give me some attention. Now I was getting it, unasked for, and despite the present anger towards him, I could not move away. I was becoming a hypocrite, and a guilty feeling rose in me. I was giving into temptation from the devil, and forsaking the vengeance I had sworn to my clan.

The hand that wasn't fondling me moved around to my front and lifted up my shirt. I panted as his moist lips and tongue traced around my bellybutton causing shivers to travel up my skin despite the warmth of the fire. My shirt was pushed up even farther as Itachi lapped up my chest and began to flick his tongue across the pink of my nipples.

His hand had now made it fully into my pants and began dragging down both it and my boxers in order to gain better access to my full erection. My hips started to move instinctively against his hand as he slowly started to pump my member. The whole while his breath played across my moistened nipples, causing me to moan even louder.

What was wrong or right, whatever I had come here for completely left my mind as he bent down and sucked lightly on the tip of my cock. He seemed to enjoy the taste and the noise it caused me to utter because he began tracing his entire tongue up and down the hardness before completely taking it into his mouth.

My fingers were still tangled in his hair, but this time I was pulling him towards me rather than pushing away. He paused and looked up at me, apparently pleased at the desperation I knew I had plainly written on my face as I thrust my hips towards him. It didn't take very long before I felt the warmness around my groin intensify and I gasped, spilling myself into his mouth.

He swallowed and his tongue did another sweep of my cock to claim anything he missed. I was breathless and lightheaded after the ordeal, and my hands still on his head kept me from falling back. I didn't need to worry about that very long, since he brought his hands around my hips, easing me down to lay on the ground.

The few dry leaves on the ground prickled my back as Itachi crawled over me, sliding off his outer Akatsuki robe and letting it fall by the tree. He straddled me and sat up, slowly pulling off his shirt. My brother was in good shape. Though not heavily built, he still appeared to be firmer than I remembered him being before he was exiled. Just watching him undress caused my arousal to grow again. Itachi slid off his pants and moved back down to meet my lips.

This time when he kissed, I kissed back. I had already gotten myself too deeply involved in this for the moment, so I figured there was nothing left to loose. '_Except my virginity_,' I realized as I felt Itachi's erection grind against my own. My back arched and I wrapped my arms around his neck, moving against him as the friction sent more washes of pleasure throughout my body.

I gave a pitiful groan as he pulled away and began to rummage in the black-and-red robes on the ground. With him moving away, I realized how cool the night was without the warmth of his body pressed against mine. To think I could have still been crouching in the bushes and watching him as my legs slowly deadened under me. I impatiently propped myself up on my elbows to see just what my brother was doing that required him to move away and busy himself with something else. My eyes widened at the tube of lubricant that he pulled from within his robes.

"You planned this!" I accused, moving back.

"What makes you think that this tube was meant solely for you?" My brother chuckled at the jealousy that flashed across my eyes.

He moved over me again and left me breathless with his onslaught of kisses. While my tongue wrestled furiously with his own, I felt a foreign coldness brush past my entrance. I made a slight sound and flinched away, causing Itachi to laugh.

"I see my younger brother is still untouched," he said, amusement clear in his voice. He leaned down and whispered in my ear. "If you're not yet strong enough to endure the slight discomfort, I can go find someone with slightly more experience."

"I am not weak," I said firmly, giving my brother a steady gaze.

Itachi chuckled and slid his finger into me. My muscles tightened from the unfamiliar contact and I forced myself to relax and keep a steady face. I was not going to be weak. Not in front of him. The second finger was as uncomfortable as the first and I felt tears sting the corners of my eyes as the third one stretched me unbearably. I forced the tears back before Itachi could see them and gave him a confident smirk.

"Well, are you going to sit there all day?"

My brother smirked at my forced confidence and removed his fingers from me. I let out a small sigh of relief that was cut off by me inhaling sharply as his erection penetrated me. The tears were coming again, and I forced them back as Itachi began to thrust into me. Just how the heck was this supposed to be pleasurable? I felt like my lower half was being ripped apart and prodded roughly. Suddenly, I was hit by a wave of pleasure as my brother connected with something deep within me.

Itachi heard my gasp and gripped onto my hips, aiming for the spot that had caused me to cry out in pleasure. It still hurt, but I ignored the pain now, focusing completely on the inexplicable feeling that overcame my senses when my brother stimulated that area. My nails dug into his lower back as I bucked my hips against his rapid thrusting. I could feel my body temperature rising a few degrees and sweat began to bead on my forehead from the exertion. Never in my life had I ever encountered such a pure raw form of ecstasy.

I could feel myself reaching my peak and cried out as I released and felt my brother's warmth flood into me. I lay there, dazed and panting, my chest rapidly rising and falling as if I had been running for the entire day. I felt instantly tired and forced back a yawn that threatened to escape.

Itachi rolled over to one side of me, grabbing his robes and draping them over our bare bodies as a makeshift blanket. I snuggled up to the warmth and sound of his steady heartbeat, reminded of the days when I was younger and would go to his bed to seek protection from my nightmares. Those were situations where he never turned me away, and instead comforted me until I was able to fall asleep, safe in the strong arms around me.

Things had changed so much, yet the feeling of security curled up next to Itachi had not vanished. I forgot all about him being a merciless killer, and as I faded off into sleep, all I could see was my big brother Itachi, my hero, watching over me.

* * *

Well, this was one of the most explicit lemons I've written thus far; I hope it was okay. Sasuke has a really childish moment at the ending and has given into the part of him that loves his brother, but how will he take it in the morning when his mind is clearer?

Author's Note:

(1) – I realize that in the time period I'm writing this, Sasuke has his (sexy) black one piece. Frankly, that would be hell to get off for my purposes and would bare down Sasuke much faster than I wanted, so I took a little artistic license.


	4. Target Practice

Sorry I took so long to update guys. Going away for a few days so I sorta rushed the finishing of this chapter so I'd get it in before then.

**Patty** – Heehee, I like that too.

**kawaii kitsune-kun** – Itachi can be a meanie. But he still loves his little brother, in an odd, twisted way.

**mayfaire** – I'm so honoured that you reviewed my story. I love your fics! 'happy' Oh yeah, Sasuke's in big denial right now, but he's slowly warming up to his feelings.

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Chapter Three: Target Practice

I rolled over and yawned, slowly opening my eyes. Something was missing. I looked down and found myself dressed. In fact, I was lying in the clearing and there was no sign of my brother anywhere. The only indication that anyone had ever been here was the pile of charred ashes from the fire. I looked around. There wasn't a flash of red Akatsuki clouds anywhere.

I jumped to my feet. That bastard! Taking what he wanted and then just leaving me without warning. I felt used, and I really should have expected it. Since when did my brother care about me? No, last night he was just in it for a good fuck. I was an idiot to give myself away so eagerly to him.

Or maybe I had just dreamt it all. Maybe he knocked me out when I was in the bushes, and the events of last night were all just unconscious ramblings. I stepped forward and winced. No. It wasn't a dream. Then just where was he? Didn't he know I had to kill him?

I almost burst out laughing at that thought. Was I still going on about ending his life? Sure, that was my goal, but I was being a complete and total hypocrite. I wasn't ready to kill him, neither physically or emotionally. I had trailed Itachi in order to quash my more-than-brotherly affections for him, but ended up sleeping with him. That was not the right way to go about things. Maybe I was better off going to Orochimaru first. I started to head off when I heard an odd sound. Wincing once again, I crouched down and made my way quietly through the bushes towards it.

I stopped dead at the sight before me. There was Itachi in a lake with the water reaching just above his navel. His robes were discarded on the shore a few feet away from me. He didn't look up from his ablutions, but instead spoke.

"It's rude to stare, Sasuke."

I gritted my teeth. I hated how he always knew when I was around. Why was he acknowledging my presence now? Itachi bent down fully, soaking his long hair in the water. The strands coiled on the surface in snake-like patterns before he pulled his hair up and the crystal clear water cascaded down his body. He squeezed out the excess water and regarded me again.

"There's a kunai in my robes. See if your aim has improved any."

I stared at him.

"Or you can use your own if you wish. Come on." He dipped his fingers elegantly in the water before marking an 'x' upon his chest. "That is where the heart is located. You'll need precise accuracy when throwing from that distance. So go on. I thought you enjoyed showing off in front of me."

I was still slack jawed at his invitation. He was openly inviting me to throw a possibly deadly weapon at his exposed chest. I could hardly believe my luck. I pulled out my kunai eagerly. I would make up for my humiliation of last night. Grinning, I stepped forward to the edge of the lake. My brother was positioned several meters from me, so it wasn't going to be an incredibly easy throw, but it still wasn't all that difficult. I had practiced obsessively and was confident in throwing a bulls-eye at an even larger distance.

Bringing my arm back, I threw the kunai so it went spiraling towards my brother's pale chest. When it was half way there the back of my mind started to panic. What if I killed him right here and now? What would I do? I scolded myself for having doubts, especially when it was too late. My brother stared lazily as the metal projectile went spinning towards him. At the last second, he brought his hand out and caught it, just as it was about to penetrate.

He examined the kunai's position in his hand and clucked his tongue. "You're off by a few millimeters, and with the angle you threw it at, it wouldn't fully puncture my aorta, and would hardly be a fatal wound. He casually flicked his wrist and the kunai went sailing back to me. My pupils shank and I caught it just before it could plunge through my own heart. "You disappointed me. I know you can do better than that. Try again."

I stared once again. Was he mocking me, or was this some sort of twisted training? Once again I threw the kunai and once again he caught it.

"Closer," he observed, "But you've got to fix your angle. With the way you throw I wouldn't know whether you're trying to plunge down or up."

I gritted my teeth. From what I could tell, I was dead even, but apparently my brother didn't think so.

"If you want to be a mindless ninja throwing hundreds of kunai every which way and not caring at all for accuracy, then you're going the right way for it. You don't even have the grace to be able to split a hair on my head. Again." He rethrew the kunai and I leapt out of the way this time.

It thudded into the tree behind me, completely level, and quivered, nearly fully buried up to the hilt. My brother hadn't even looked when he had thrown it, and didn't even look now to see if it had hit accurately or not. He looked rather bored, in fact. I examined the kunai, partially to figure out how to pry it out of the tree, and also desperately looking for a slight error in his angle or velocity. I could find none. My brother, as always, was five steps ahead of me in skill. If I had not moved in time, the kunai would have ripped straight through my chest, no doubt pinning my still beating heart against the tree.

I planted my foot against the trunk and heaved at the weapon. There was a cracking of splintering wood as it slowly slid out. I gave it a massive tug and found myself flying back into the shallows as it finally released the tree.

Itachi chuckled as I stood up and shook my head, causing water to go flying.

I glared back at him and chucked the kunai as hard as I could. He caught it easily and shook his head. "Learn to control yourself, brother. That wouldn't have even hit me. And if you can't control yourself, then learn to aim."

I glowered at him with the darkest look I could muster, still standing ankle-deep in the water. I could feel my shoes soaking it all in and knew they would be squelching for the rest of the day until they dried.

"Come here."

I glared and thought. Not whether I was going to go in or not, his tone was deadly serious, but whether it was worth at least taking off my shirt for, which was already soaked anyway. Deciding to give it some time to dry, I slid it off as well as my pants and lay them flat out on the shore. I stubbornly kept my boxers on, determined not to give my brother any more of a show. Cautiously I approached him, standing just out of reach.

"Are you afraid?"

"No." I stepped closer. The water was just above my elbows.

He held out his hand and I placed the kunai in it. My brother shook his hand and replaced it in my grip. Instead, he took my wrist and moved it back so that the kunai was facing him.

"Alright, maybe from this distance you can actually aim well."

My cheeks flushed in embarrassment and anger. I was standing right in front of him! Just how bad did he think I was? I hit bulls-eyes almost every single time, and that still wasn't good enough. Itachi instead pointed out my very slight angle faults, things that only a perfectionist would care to fix. My accuracy was good enough to get the job done. Itachi really was my strive to become better, but this was getting ridiculously nit-picky.

"Why are you teaching me to kill you?" I asked, narrowing my eyes suspiciously. "Just what do you have to gain from it?"

My brother shrugged. "What better teacher could you have? Do you think you could get a better teacher than me to instruct you on the proper ways to fight and potentially reach my level?"

"In order to kill you. Sounds masochistic to me."

"There is much you don't understand, Sasuke. I want someone to reach my level, who is worthy to become my rival. I made the Uchiha's clan sharigan a rarity. You will be sought after for your ability, and I want you to become as untouchable as I. The sharigan will be even more legend."

"So you killed my family just so we'd be more rare!"

Itachi smirked and shook his head. "I don't think you have the mental ability to grasp my purposes."

I shook from anger. "Maybe if you spoke clearly you might be understood."

Itachi shrugged. "I care little if I'm understood. Sasuke, you've woken up from your dreamland and opened your eyes to the harshness of the real world. Your driving anger will be what pushes you to greatness. I want you to become great, because I want to fight you."

His remark reminded me of a time when I had wished the same thing when I looked upon Naruto. I wanted to fight him to prove I was the stronger, better one. That I could stand on my own and be strong enough to face up to my murderous brother. But still, that was different from Itachi. It seemed pointless for my brother to build me up to his level, only for me to be crushed by his power anyway. He expected me to win in the end, and that was the base concept that I could not grasp. Did he want to die?

He brought his arms around me from behind and pulled me close enough that I could feel the skin on my back touch the wet flesh of his chest. He silently held me there for a while as I stared straight ahead.

"Is this how you drowned Shisui?" I asked quietly.

Itachi was quiet for a very long time. "I am not going to drown you. That would serve no purpose for me."

"Yet he had a purpose. I saw you together…a lot. How you would smile for him when he touched you. You only smiled ever for him. He was more like a brother than I was. And you used him to advance your sharigan."

"Would you rather I had used you?" he asked calmly.

"I wasn't important enough for you to use me." I sneered, not turning around or responding to his embrace.

"I could have used you, had I wished it so," my brother remarked. "But Shisui did not show half as much potential as you did. He was weak, and would never be fit to be my rival."

"You say I'm weak."

"You are."

"…"

"But you have the potential to excel beyond that. That is what matters." He gently released his hold and moved away. The now moistened skin on my back shivered in contact with the cool air. I watched him walk out of the lake, water streaming down in little waterfalls all over his attractive body. He looked back and regarded me.

"You stood so close to me for several minutes and you still did not try to stab me with that kunai," he observed.

"You would have blocked it anyway," I retorted in defense.

"I would have," Itachi admitted, "Until you learn to do it right." He walked out of the water and pulled a small towel out, drying himself off. With that, he slid on his clothes and his robe.

"Why did you join that organization?" I suddenly asked.

He turned back to me once again and stared. "For the moment it benefits me. That is all you need to know."

I got out of the water as he began walking away and hurriedly pulled my still damp clothes on.

"I take it you are following me."

"No, I'm going to Orochimaru."

"Don't lie. You may walk with me, like a man, or scurry in your bushes like a mouse."

With a set jaw, I followed behind him, not half convinced as to why I still was doing this. What Itachi had said was valid: there was no better teacher when it came to learning to defeat him. He had explained his motivations for wanting me to become stronger, but they still made no sense. And spending time with him certainly wasn't building up my hate like I had hoped it would. Every now and then I remembered what he did with disgust and anger, but this still seemed like an odd path to accomplish my goal. My own reasoning led me to believe that if nothing else, I could learn my brother's own techniques and be better prepared to counter them in the final battle. As long as Itachi didn't learn mine as well.

Everything was like it was back then. Itachi still walked several steps ahead of me so all I could ever see was his back. Always me following him around, my brother's shadow, silent and small.

I was so busy looking down at my feet that I didn't notice when my brother stopped suddenly. I crashed into his back and stumbled, catching my footing before I fell. Muttering a curse, I peered around Itachi to see what he had stopped for. In the middle of the path stood, to my surprise, Kabuto. He had his arms folded as he regarded Itachi coolly.

"Orochimaru is not pleased with you, Itachi."

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Sorry to end it so abruptly, but I will hopefully have more soon. Thanks to all my reviewers! Please keep sending me feedback! It motivates me to write faster. :) 


	5. The Snake’s Lair

Thanks for the reviews everyone. I was quite happy to come back from my trip to find feedback. Please keep it up because I really want to know what you think of the story, and any improvements I could do to make it even better.

**narroch06** – Yay for Kabuto! And Orochimaru. 'grins' I'm quite fond of Orochimaru as well. He's so twisted and delicious….yeah… 'awkward moment' I have a few different theories as to why Itachi did what he did, but I felt that the one I discussed in the story worked in the context of everything. And snakes are awesome…I love them.

**Patty** – Yeah, it is an odd sort of relationship. If Sasuke would get past his denial and Itachi would be more open, it might be considered a regular relationship, lol.

**Holyprophetwilbert** – Hehehe, I usually daydream possible chapters to other peoples' stories when they take too long to update, but none of my musings are ever as good as the real thing.

**tidAl rabbit** – Thank you. :D

**KagomeHigarashi** – I'm so flattered that you like it so much. Thank you. :)

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Chapter Four: The Snake's Lair

Itachi stared at the pale-haired sound nin in slight disinterest. "Is he now? What have I done to him this time?"

Kabuto looked annoyed. "You know precisely what you are doing, Itachi."

"It was his choice to follow me. Your master doesn't seem to have enough of a pull to draw him in faster. Besides, what's his rush? I believe he missed his last deadline. There would be no use for him yet."

"He wants him now."

Itachi quirked an eyebrow. "Well, he'll just have to learn to be patient."

I was confused with the conversation. What was Kabuto doing here? He worked for Orochimaru? And just what were they talking about? I stepped out farther from behind my brother to get a better view.

Kabuto's eyes turned upon me as I came into his line of sight. "There you are. Now are you going?"

"Going where?" I asked, though I felt I already knew the answer.

"To Orochimaru. He requests your presence."

I looked up at my brother. His expression was unreadable, and he didn't turn to meet my gaze. Itachi didn't move as I began to walk forward towards Kabuto. Orochimaru's follower smirked in satisfaction as I approached.

"Is that where the power you seek truly lies?"

I paused when I heard my brother's voice behind me. Kabuto's face turned into a scowl.

"Stay out of this Itachi."

My brother said nothing else as I turned to look at him. His eyes were as piercing as ever, and I felt completely exposed under their gaze. Itachi could sense my fear. He knew that I was petrified of Orochimaru, and what he would do to me in exchange for giving me power. But I had not choice. I had left my home and betrayed everyone I had known in order to reach a point where I could stand before the snake-man. And I was all doing it for Itachi. If Itachi wanted me to become stronger, then why was he disapproving my decision of going to Orochimaru?

"Sasuke, come on." Kabuto turned to leave.

My feet felt rooted on the spot and I couldn't break the gaze from my brother. There was so much intensity in it that I was afraid of what would happen if I severed the connection. It was Itachi who looked away first. He turned his back on me and began to walk away. I looked after him longingly without knowing quite why, but I did not want him to leave.

"Sasuke!"

Kabuto's sharp voice broke me out of my trance. I turned to see him waiting impatiently for me to follow. I turned my head back to where my brother was, but he was gone. I felt a sting of disappointment and hollowness as I gave one last glance at the empty forest before following in the footsteps of my apparent destiny.

- - -

Kabuto exchanged no words with me as we walked. I sensed a sort of controlled hostility emanating from the older nin, but he made no move to show it by attacking me. I wondered just what I had done to anger him. I had followed him like I was told, hadn't I?

We reached a large temple with intricate carvings of stone snakes curling around the building. Their eyes were set with emeralds and I shivered as the light reflecting off them glimmered eerily. They were so lifelike I was half expecting one of them to strike. Kabuto paid them no heed and instead walked through the large entranceway. I could see shadows in the trees and on ledges and could tell that this place was heavily guarded by experienced nin. No one stopped us as Kabuto led me farther into the bowels of the temple. By the chill in the air, I could tell that we were descending underground.

We reached a large cavernous chamber with yet more gigantic snake statues decorating the perimeter of the room. It was fairly empty for such a large area, save a single chair upon a small ledge in the back of the room. Kabuto walked up to it and kneeled into a bow.

"I have brought him."

A sudden movement alerted me that there was actually someone sitting in the chair. It had been hard to see before because the room was so dimly lit and the figure had sat completely motionless until now. The bandaged hand tilted Kabuto's chin up and my spine tingled unpleasantly at the low chuckle coming from the silhouette.

"Stop looking so bitter, Kabuto," the figure said softly, but audibly. The voice was almost akin to a deep hiss.

"I have obediently done what I was asked to do," stated Kabuto in monotone. His voice lowered and I had to strain to hear his next words. "But do you really need him? He's a wildcard like his brother, surely I can—"

"We have already spoken of this," the shadow interrupted, and Kabuto fell silent. "Now leave. I am finished with you for now." The hand withdrew back into the darkness.

Kabuto stood up and walked out. On his way passing me, he shot me a hateful glare. I stared coolly back. I didn't really care what was causing such a loathing to come from him. I had my own goals to keep in mind. I could hear the door shut behind me and all fell silent as I stood in the same room as the shadowed figure.

"Come here."

I walked forward without hesitation, determined not to show my fear. I would stand tall and confident in the face of whom I came to see. I stood before the chair, still unable to see distinct features of the figure, save a pair of glowing yellow eyes.

"At last you have come, Sasuke."

I nodded my head slightly. I was not going to bow before this individual. I was somewhat disgusted by what I saw. Orochimaru was not the vision of power I had remembered him being. Bandages covered up emaciated arms, and his hair fell limp and lifeless around his deathly pale face. His entire body appeared like it would crumble into dust if someone merely touched it.

The piercing yellow eyes contradicted Orochimaru's outwardly feeble appearance. In them still burned immense power, knowledge, and ambition. As they swept over me, I felt my skin shiver unpleasantly. He was looking at me like I was some juicy morsel that he was going to devour whole. He sat there, as if waiting for me to speak. So I did.

"I have come to receive the power you promised me several years ago."

Orochimaru nodded and stood. How he could possibly stand was beyond me. He looked malnourished and hardly capable of any sort of strenuous movement. It was like watching a walking corpse. He moved over and stood before me. A hand as cold as ice cupped my chin and forced me to stare into the yellow orbs.

Upon contact with their gaze, I felt my sharigan sliding instinctively into place. I didn't have to see the power-hungry grin that I knew was now spread across Orochimaru's lips.

"You have yet to advance your sharigan to the next level."

"I will," I stated with determination.

"There is no rush, yet. I am pleased you still haven't progressed as far as your brother."

I stiffened and grit my teeth.

"The latest fruit of the season is always the sweetest. You will excel beyond what he is capable of. I shall give you the power you crave, and you will repay the favor in a few years from now."

I nodded my understanding.

Those eyes were still full of an overwhelming hunger as he looked over me. I felt like an unopened toy at Christmas that he couldn't play with just yet. My skin crawled as his cold fingers slid around my face, and through my hair, moving down my neck and tracing every inch of my body possessively.

"You're perfect," he hissed softly, more to himself than directed at me.

I didn't like him touching me. It sent unpleasant shivers throughout my body, and the cursed mark on my neck began to throb. I grabbed his wrist as his hand moved to slide up my shirt.

"Let me see," he hissed in impatience, "Let me see your body."

I was officially creeped out by his tone and request and I started to protest, but his menacing look made me close my mouth. I stepped out of his reach and pulled off my shirt, clenching the fabric in one hand and glaring at Orochimaru stonily. He circled around me and I could feel his eyes tracing every inch of my bare flesh.

"You're beautiful, like your brother."

I stiffened a little. So at one point Itachi was involved in one way or another with Orochimaru. I grit my teeth as the skeletal hand captured my chin once again.

"But you will be far more obedient. I will not let the sharigan fall out of my grasp again."

I had to remind myself as to why I was here and why I should put up with this intrusion of my personal space in order to keep from lashing out violently at my antagonizer. It didn't take me long to be convinced with every ounce of my being that I hated Orochimaru. I loathed him. But I had to put up with him, because he was the only one who could give me what I needed.

Itachi's voice floated in my mind. _"Is that where the power you seek truly lies?"_ What did he mean by that? Of course that power was here. It was ludicrous to think that my brother could offer it to me. I still didn't trust his motivations for training me. I didn't want to let go of the anger that twisted in my stomach whenever I remembered what he did. So he fooled around with my emotions a little during the past few days, it all meant nothing. This is where I belonged.

I got jolted out of my thoughts at the feeling of Orochimaru's palm running up my chest. I tried to back away, but his other hand caught me on the back. The look on his face was predatory, and I was slightly disturbed to see his tongue sliding out. It wasn't the length of a normal tongue, and just kept coming and coming until I wondered where he had room in his mouth to keep it all. Orochimaru ran it up my navel and chest, sliding it up the base of my chin and causing me to tilt my head back slightly.

I stood stoically hoping his disturbing ritual would be over soon. Was I to stand there, without complaint, as he gradually molested me in order for me to gain his power? I didn't like the way he looked at me, the way he touched me, but what could I do? This was my sacrifice. It was the only way.

A little voice in my head screamed that I didn't have to put up with this, I could find a different path to follow. Was it worth this humiliation? Of all the people to grant me power, why did it have to be him?

Itachi.

No.

I wasn't going to go to him instead.

He wouldn't do this to you.

Yes he would, and he did. He had his fun, and now it's Orochimaru's turn.

You're a slut, whoring yourself off for power.

Shut up. What else can I do?

Fight.

I'm not strong enough.

I can't do anything.

I'm weak.

I forced myself not to gag as Orochimaru's tongue slid into my mouth. The kiss lasted so long that I was afraid that I was going to black out. I had trouble breathing with his face this close to mine. It was like he was sucking all the life out of me. When he pulled away I gasped in relief, taking a deep breath to stop my head from spinning. Orochimaru was muttering something as his hands wandered lower and lower down my spine. I strained to hear him, and wish I hadn't.

"I want your body now…it's not fair…that damn Hokage…I want to be in you now…"

I shuddered and felt sick. Just get this little game over with and grant me my strength so I could get out of here. To my relief, he didn't try to remove any more garments from me. Instead his hands wandered possessively for what seemed like another eternity before reluctantly moving away. I somehow found my voice, glad that when it came out it was still strong sounding.

"When will I get my power?"

"When I deem it right," responded Orochimaru, turning away and walking back to his chair. It looked like he had a great deal of trouble leaving my side, and kept glancing back with the same hunger that made my blood run cold.

"May I leave now?"

"Kabuto will show you to your quarters."

Orochimaru rapped lightly on the armrest of his chair and Kabuto entered with a bow.

"Follow me," he directed, heading down the hallway. He stopped in front of a large stone door which he opened to reveal a surprisingly well furnished and carpeted room. Tapestries, once again depicting snakes, hung on the walls and a massive emerald four-poster bed sat in the middle of the room. I was struck with awe at the elaborate arrangement, so different from the cold barren hallways we had walked through.

"There is a bathroom on the door to your right. I will come get you when Orochimaru wishes to speak with you again."

I could detect a slight sneer in his voice. I turned around, but Kabuto had already closed the door, and he could hear the sound of a lock clicking into place. With a sigh, I tested the handle. Locked in. Despite the lavish furnishings, I was still a prisoner here. I shrugged to myself. It wasn't like I had anywhere else to go, now that I had found my destination. But still, something felt…horribly wrong.

I went over and picked up a pear from a bowl of fruit. I munched on it hungrily for a while before tossing the core into a garbage bin. At least I was alone. I had half feared I'd have to stay with Orochimaru. My plan was to get power, and leave, and the less contact I had with the snake-man to accomplish that, the better.

Feeling rather drained from my experience, I crawled into the bed and pulled the covers up around me. They were soft and slippery and quite an adjustment to sleeping on the ground or up in the trees. Slowly, I drifted off to sleep.

When I awoke, I was surprised to see breakfast already on the table beside me, but there was no sign of anyone in the room. It must have been brought in recently, because steam was still coming off the contents. I sat upright and pulled the meal towards me. I'd eat, then meet with Orochimaru and talk more seriously about my training. I didn't want to waste any time now that I was here.

After eating, Kabuto entered, looking as displeased to see me as ever. I ignored him as I drank. It mattered little to me what Kabuto thought.

"Am I to go to Orochimaru again?"

"Yes," responded the sound-nin turning away. "Follow me."

I leapt up and once again went down the long dark hallways and into the chamber where I had met with Orochimaru the previous day. It appeared that the snake-eyed nin had not moved an inch since the last visit. He still sat in the chair, only stirring when Kabuto and I entered.

"I take it your accommodations were to your liking?" he said softly.

I nodded. "They were more than acceptable."

"Good." Orochimaru grinned and leaned comfortably back into his chair. "Leave, Kabuto."

Kabuto turned and walked out of the room.

Once again, Orochimaru got up and circled around me. I decided to cut right to the point before the same ritual as yesterday repeated itself.

"I wish to start my training today. It is of utmost importance to me that I gain this power as soon as possible."

"What's the rush?" crooned Orochimaru. "Power does not come all at once. In fact, it is often agonizingly just out of reach." His fingers brushed my cheek.

"Then it is best I begin as soon as I can in order to reach it faster."

"You are much too impatient."

I nearly snapped out at how impatient he had been the previous day, but instead held my tongue and said something else. "I came here for the sole purpose to gain power, not to idle around in the lap of luxury. Had I wanted that, I could have stayed home."

"You have no home anymore, or have you forgotten?" Orochimaru sneered in satisfaction at the dark scowl on my face.

"Train me. Now." I was a little taken aback by my own boldness.

Something dangerous flickered in Orochimaru's eyes as he approached me. "I will train you when I deem it necessary. You're falling into your brother's reckless path, too much in a rush to gain too much power. Do not push me, Sasuke. When you are ready, you will get what you deserve."

I bit my lip to keep from saying more. It was clear that I had displeased Orochimaru with my blunt demand. But still, I didn't come here to sit around and wait while he ogled me. Still, I knew when I was pushing my boundaries and remained silent.

"Good." Orochimaru nodded in satisfaction. "You may leave now."

"That's it?" I asked, raising an incredulous eyebrow.

"Go back to your room. I'll summon you again later."

I scowled, but Kabuto was already leading me out. That was the most pointless encounter. At least he didn't try and touch me again. I sighed as the door to my room closed and locked again. Just what the hell was I supposed to do here? There weren't any books or scrolls to go through. Frankly, the only purpose of the room was to lounge around, and I wasn't one for lounging.

Caring little for what Orochimaru would think if I damaged part of his room, I went over into the corner and started to do exercises with my chakara. I wasn't going to sit around being useless and bored. I even summoned and little chidori in order to practice my control of it. If Orochimaru was going to be slow in training me, I would train myself while I waited.

I looked at the singed tapestry and carpet, as well as the wreckage of a sofa that I had caused when swinging my chidori around. Figuring it was good enough for one day and not wanting to drain my chakara too much in case Orochimaru changed his mind, I collapsed lazily on the bed. Tomorrow, I would be firmer about my training, despite the risk of angering Orochimaru. He wouldn't kill me so suddenly from impatience if he'd been waiting so impatiently to get me. Or at least, that's what I hoped.

One week later, and the far end of the room was starting to look like war zone. Once again I was locked up in my quarters like an animal, practicing my chidori. Whenever Orochimaru called to see me, he would only talk about unhelpful matters, or stare at me, or touch me. None of this was helping me any, and my patience was wearing thin. When Kabuto finally came to escort me again to Orochimaru, I was pretty fed up. As far as I was concerned, I had been wasting my time. If not for the power I knew Orochimaru held, I would have left long ago.

Orochimaru smirked at my scowling face. "I take it you are becoming slightly restless."

"I came here for a reason," I spat. "So far all I've accomplished is something I could do just about anywhere."

"Very well. It's unfair of me to make you wait for so long. Starting right now, you may train with Kabuto."

Kabuto's face mirrored my own shocked disgust.

"I came here to learn and gain power from you, not some other high-ranked ninja! Again, this is something I could have gotten elsewhere."

"Kabuto is my most trusted and powerful follower. You will learn from him before you learn from me."

"Jackass," I muttered, under my breath. He was stalling, plain and simple. He wasn't ready to give me my power just yet, and I wanted it right away. Enough of beating around the bush.

But he was the one in control, and I had to play by his rules. With a sigh, I turned and faced Kabuto. He actually looked happier than I had ever seen him at the prospect of receiving the chance to openly beat me up. I slid my sharigan on. At least I'd be able to pick up some new moves. Orochimaru sat down, eager for the entertainment.

To say I got my ass kicked was a severe understatement. I didn't even want to recount the bitter humiliation of barely being able to get one hit in. As I lay on the floor, groaning and cursing the silver-haired nin, I could hear Orochimaru chuckling in his chair.

"You should have gone easy on him, Kabuto."

Kabuto stood over me and rolled me over onto my back with his foot. He looked quite pleased and amused. "Don't worry, I didn't hit anything vital. You just might be sore for a few days." He smirked as I clenched my teeth. I hoped I at least managed to withhold some of the information my sharigan copied, though Kabuto had moved so quickly and spontaneously during the fight that I wasn't sure if I was able to fully copy the movements enough to be able to recreate them again when I was alone. Repressing a groan, I staggered onto my feet.

"Take him back to his room, Kabuto. He may need a little while to rest up."

I narrowed my eyes at Orochimaru. If he would only grant me some of the power, I could have stood a chance. And once again, he had succeeded in stalling me because I doubted my muscles would be able to function properly for a few days. Damn him. Why the hell did I put up with this?

I had half a mind to leave, but then where would I be? I could surely get power from elsewhere, couldn't I? Anything would be more progress than sitting and waiting or getting beat up and waiting. I would give Orochimaru a little more time, and if he still didn't comply to my demands, I would go off on my own again until he warmed up more to the idea of sharing power with me. He wasn't going to get something for nothing.

For now, all I could do was lay motionless on my bed, trying to ignore the stinging ache of my muscles. That damn Kabuto, he must have drugged those needles with some sort of venom. I couldn't stand up to him, and I knew that Itachi would be able to kick Kabuto's ass. Everyone was so far ahead of me, and Itachi stood over them all. How he had done it was beyond me. He said I had the potential, but would I ever reach it?

I groaned and buried my face into the pillow. What I wouldn't give to feel those warm hands on me. I was slightly disturbed by the thought, but after feeling the cold touch of Orochimaru, I preferred my brother's bloodstained ones. Shutting my eyes, I envisioned him massaging my aches away, and the sting of my muscles began to fade as I drifted off into sleep.

Kabuto was true to his word. I couldn't leave my bed for a good three days for fear of my limbs giving out. Kabuto was in a much better mood as he took me to go see Orochimaru. There was still a sting in my legs, but I ignored it as I followed him. Nothing ever changed in my meetings of Orochimaru. I would demand power, he would tell me to wait, while hypocritically muttering while he looked at me that it was taking too long. Finally, I got right to the point.

"Why are you stalling, and not granting me my power now? You haven't even attempted to advance me in any way, unless you consider me getting smacked around by your henchman enough."

Orochimaru regarded me over pent fingers. "I have experience with you Uchihas. I have learned over the years not to give too much power too soon. You tend to become reckless and disobedient. I want to make sure you won't pull out on your half of the deal."

"How do I know you wont?" I countered, "I've been sitting around on my ass all day without even a gradual improvement. I'm not going to wait around forever, especially if you're just going to waste my time. I'm leaving, and when you decide to follow through on your deal, then we'll talk." I turned towards the door. Kabuto stood in front of it. "Move," I growled, in a foul mood.

He didn't and Orochimaru spoke from behind me. "I cannot allow you to leave Sasuke. Getting you back is such a pain."

"You're the pain," I snapped, knowing I was way out of line. I stormed towards the door, despite having it blocked. I was fed up.

Kabuto smirked as I stomped up. He already had his hands on some medical needles in his pocket. Before he could do anything, an event that shocked everyone into freezing happened.

Itachi strolled casually into the room as if he were not entering a well guarded and fortified temple housing one of the most powerful ninjas known. He looked at me without expression.

"Are you done playing around, Sasuke?"

I stood there in shock. What was he doing here, and how the hell did he get in without any commotion? Orochimaru looked livid and called out to Kabuto. His loyal follower instantly lunged in to attack. I saw something shift in my brother's eyes as he turned to face his attacker. I watched as Kabuto froze, before falling heavily to the ground and beginning to spasm. Orochimaru was out of his seat now, looking enraged. That in itself was a terrifying sight. Still, my brother did not flinch as he stepped over Kabuto's convulsing body.

"Are you coming, Sasuke?"

"He is not going anywhere," snarled Orochimaru.

Itachi looked briefly back at him, as if he wasn't even worth his time. "You know you can't stop me. Not in that condition. You've had your chance and fun, playing with my brother. You really must learn to share." With that, he turned away and walked out.

"Sasuke."

The tone of Orochimaru's voice made my skin crawl as I began to follow my brother out. Somehow, I managed to find my voice.

"I'll be back when you have something to offer me."

Orochimaru gave a savage hiss and his neck began to extend, his entire head with fangs gleaming shooting towards me. I flinched, but suddenly my brother was standing in front of me calmly. The head stopped advancing, swaying from side to side warily and eyeing my brother's cool demeanour.

"I will not forgive this, Itachi."

"When have you ever forgiven anything on my behalf?" my brother responded. "You're becoming a bitter old man, holing yourself up in here."

"You shut up," Orochimaru hissed. I had to admire my brother. I would not be able to remain so calm and steady if Orochimaru was looking and speaking to me like that.

Itachi said nothing more and turned away, taking my shoulders. "Come along now. I think you've overstayed your welcome."

I said nothing as he led me out, keeping in between me and a very pissed off Orochimaru. I was surprised that we weren't attacked on the way out. I could see the guards hovering behind the foliage and stone structures, but they made no attempt to stop us. There were a few dead bodies lying on the side, though, of those that apparently had tried to get in Itachi's way.

I didn't speak until we were well away from the stone structure. I vaguely wondered why Orochimaru didn't try and attack my brother. Itachi was outnumbered. Could Orochimaru be scared of him; was my brother that strong that he could waltz in alone into such a compound and come out unscathed?

"Why…did you come for me?" I asked softly.

Itachi was quiet for a moment. "I felt he had enough fun. Besides, you weren't getting anything done there and simply wasting your time. He was holding you back instead of pushing you forward."

"How did you know?" I asked, slightly surprised.

"I've known Orochimaru for quite a while now. He won't grant you anything until he knows he can control you fully."

"How do you know him?" I couldn't stop asking questions, and I was more surprised that he answered them.

"At one point I was like you. But I've learned from my mistakes, and you'll have to trust me enough to learn from mine as well."

I scowled. "I don't trust you one bit."

Itachi shrugged. "Do you trust me more than Orochimaru?"

I was silent.

"That is enough, then." He kept walking.

I broadened my stride to keep up. "What happened between you and Orochimaru?"

"You are asking many irritating questions, younger brother."

"Answer me. If I'm supposed to apparently learn from your mistakes, I need to know what they are."

Itachi turned and regarded me for a long time. I didn't break my gaze and stood my ground firmly.

"So you want to know the truth of why I massacred the entire Uchiha clan, do you?" he asked softly.

I felt a shiver run up my spine and I nodded.

My brother gave a sigh. "Very well Sasuke. Sit, and I will tell you."

* * *

A nice long chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it. Once again I end on a cliffhanger. Sorry! 


	6. Sacrifice

Wow, I'm uber happy with the number of reviews I got for the last chapter. Thank you everyone! I love you! To give credit, I actually first heard a version of this theory (regarding Itachi's killing of the clan) from my friend (Kowaikage – go check out her awesome fics!) before I really had much knowledge of the series, and tweaked it now that I know more about Sasuke and Itachi's past.

**tidAL rabbiT** – Hehehe, what a perfect way to describe them.

**Patty** – Nah, he was just letting Sasuke have his way for a bit so he'd learn for himself that he'd rather be with big brother. :D

**Catherine Lewie Rain** – 'munches subtly on the muffin _she never received_' 'shifty eyes'Glad you like it. Sorry the update didn't come sooner, but I was trying to make up for the lack of update on my Juvenile Orion fic. I love writing this certain fanfic so much, that if I don't consciously remember about my other fics, I'd end up writing to this and nothing else. I already had the chapter half written several days ago.

**mayfaire** – Update your 'Engagement Trouble' fic too! Itachi can be overprotective of his little brother. He only let Sasuke go for that short period of time knowing that Orochimaru couldn't do too much to mess Sasuke up so soon. I have a couple of theories as to why Itachi massacred the Uchiha clan, but this one is the theory that I think fits best.

**jounin1280** – Eeee, I'm so happy you think that Itachi is in character. I worked especially hard in this fic to try and keep everyone (reasonably) in character since I'm notorious for doing otherwise. Hm…as for the length of the story, I'm not sure. I don't think it's going to be terribly long, at least three or four more chapters, but I can't really say for sure. I actually have the ending written out already, I just need to get there. Fear not, the story has a ways to go yet…

**blisblop – **You're welcome. And thank you. :)

**rAiNwAtEr** – There is definitely a lack of good ItaSasu fics (though I have stumbled across a few). Itachi is so hot. Just everything about him has this style of complete calm and control. 'melts into pile of goo' Mmm…Sasuke, how could you keep your hands off him?

**UchihaMangekyou** – Nice name. Thanks, I'm glad you like it. 

**BlackMystick** – Bwahahahahaaa! Eviiiiil!

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Chapter Five: Sacrifice 

Itachi's voice was very soft as he spoke.

"I met Orochimaru a long time ago. It was a little after when I had become ANBU captain and my missions became more frequent. I met him on one of these and we spoke. He told me of an organization that was gradually rising in power, the Akatsuki. He promised me a position in it. I didn't trust his motives then, but I was intrigued by his description of the Akatsuki and their goals. This was something I did not want to be left out of. They were the key to greater power that I would not be able to gain while going on missions at home.

"So when I would leave on missions, I would get them done quickly and meet again with Orochimaru. This happened for several months, and through this time I began to understand him better. My suspicions were shown to be correct the night I went to go meet with him and he attempted to mark me with his cursed seal. I was just strong enough to fend him off, though it was barely enough. It was then I learned that he was only interested in using my body as a vessel for his own soul. He chose me because of my great skill, but also because I had something he had wanted for a long time: the sharigan.

"Despite getting away, I knew I was still not strong enough to fully defend myself should he try again. I had to become stronger to protect myself from him, and also to become noticeable to the Akatsuki. I was still interested in their goals. There were many choices I had to make. The first priority was to protect myself from Orochimaru. I studied into the sharigan and learned that there was a way to increase its ability to the next level. There was a heavy cost, but one that I was willing to take. That night, I drowned my closest friend."

Itachi's voice was dead even, but I saw something flicker across his face for a split second. I wondered what exactly had occurred when he had killed Shisui, but he did not go into detail.

"I was rewarded with Mangekyo sharigan, and it proved to be exactly what I needed. When I met with Orochimaru again…he learned quickly that I was beyond his reach." Itachi smirked sadistically at the memory that he didn't further elaborate. "Orochimaru is a survivor though, and soon let go of hopes of possessing me. After all, I wasn't the only person born with the sharigan. There was an entire clan of us. Though Orochimaru lost the best, he could still pick and choose from what was left. The sharigan was still within his reach. I could not allow that. So, I took the source of his sharigan away from him."

I felt my breath catch in my throat as my brother spoke calmly.

"I killed all the natural holders of the sharigan. I did it to keep the sharigan forever out of reach of Orochimaru. I did it to measure the extent of the power that I had developed. I also did it to prove myself to the Akatsuki. After killing the clan, they accepted me into their ranks. Orochimaru was enraged at my actions, and promptly left the Akatsuki." Itachi sneered. "Probably best for him because I'm sure I would have killed him then as well. I'm sure he was in an ill humor for a long time. That is, until he found out I left one other holder of the sharigan alive."

I stiffened as Itachi stared down at me. I felt young again, stumbling over the blood and bodies of my clan, sobbing and wondering why I was still left alive. Why had I been spared? I voiced my torment.

"Why?"

Itachi regarded me. "Because I needed an avenger. I had done an unforgivable thing, and I could not be allowed to get away with it so easily and consequence-free. I did not want to fully destroy the sharigan, and have its line end with me. It is too strong a force to be wiped out. I wanted it to live on, untouchable…legend…never to be exploited by any other but its rightful holder. And I wanted it to be you."

Itachi's hand caressed my cheek and slid down to cup my chin. "I killed Shisui, but I did not want to have to kill you, little brother."

I felt my throat tighten in a knot. I didn't deserve to live, I didn't want his bloody hands to spare me. I should have died with the rest of them, _he_ should have died for doing this. And realization hit me of what he had just said. I was the only one who could truly avenge my clan for the wrong he had done. But still, another part of my mind voiced its thoughts. Itachi did it to protect the clan's prized sharigan, and protect the holders from falling into the grasp of Orochimaru. If they had survived, Orochimaru could just keep picking and choosing until at last he could seize the power he wanted. My brother seemed to sense the confusion that was whirling through my mind.

"So now that you know, Sasuke, could you blame me, or would you have done the same?"

I was at a loss for words. Of course I wouldn't! I wouldn't have killed my family, my people. I was loyal! But would I have let them fall victim to Orochimaru? No! I would protect them with the power I had, if I was my brother. But could I keep them safe forever? Was their greater safety only locked away in the solution of death? My head spun and I clutched it, torn by the conflicting reasonings in my head.

Itachi was quiet and let me battle silently with my warring thoughts.

"Y-you shouldn't have killed them." I felt an unwelcome warm wetness streak down one cheek, and then another. I didn't want to cry in front of him. I didn't want to show him I was weak, but it just hurt…so much. I turned my face away and buried it in my shaking hands.

"And why shouldn't I have?" Itachi inquired softly.

"W-we could've held him off, fought him, stopped him from getting the sharigan. If you just told everybody, we c-could've done something about it!"

Itachi shook his head. "You still know little of how the world works, Sasuke. Had I not done what I had done, if you had survived, you would be cursing Orochimaru's name rather than mine. You may not agree with my methods, but I did what had to be done under the circumstances."

"It did not have to be done!" I screamed, tears running freely down my face now. There is always another way…always. I didn't have to loose my mother and father and everyone who meant anything to me. I stiffened in surprise as black and red robes wrapped around me. I buried my head in Itachi's chest and sobbed as he held me stoically. My fingers gripped the fabric with trembling emotion and my screams were muffled by the steady body of my brother.

After a while, my sobbing died down and I swallowed, my throat raw. I still rested my face against my brother's chest, not wanting to look up at him after falling apart like I had. I could hear the dull thumping of my brother's heart, and could no longer deny that he still had one after everything he had done. It wasn't right what he did, but was it really the lesser of the two evils? I didn't want to think anymore; my head was pounding and my eyes burning from the hot, salty tears. A cool hand reached out and tilted my head upwards. Itachi's bangs brushed my forehead as he leaned down and gently kissed the trails left by my tears.

"I'm sorry, little brother. But I carry no regrets for my actions."

His words caused me to force back another set of tears. I wasn't going to start crying again. I'm surprised he wasn't mocking me for my show of weakness.

"There could have been another way," I choked out.

Itachi listened patiently as he ran his fingers lightly through my hair. His eyes constantly bore the crimson sharigan, making it even more difficult to decipher his thoughts. I trembled and broke away from his hold, turning my back on him.

"Why did you let me go to Orochimaru, then?" I whispered.

I could hear fabric rustling as Itachi walked up behind me, resting his slender hands on my shoulders.

"There was little he could do to you at the time. If I had ordered you to keep away, you would have went anyway, like I'm sure you did when you left Kohana. But I let you go, so you could see just what was waiting for you before I came to collect you. I would not allow Orochimaru to get ahold of you," his fingers tightened slightly, "But I had to make you understand on your own that your path did not have to lead you there. Even if you gained your power, Orochimaru would take hold of your body and use the power for his own use."

"I want the power to kill you. Because of what you did. Because no matter what you tell me, it wasn't right! Why aren't you upset by this? Why do you want to die?"

"Because you will avenge the wrongs I have done."

"But it makes no sense!" I yelled in frustration.

"Stop trying to make sense of something you are not ready to comprehend."

"Are you calling me stupid?" I snapped.

"Hardly, little brother. Now stop shouting. Your throat will only hurt more later."

I opened my mouth to protest, but he sealed it with a kiss.

"Hush. Now come with me."

Itachi's back turned and he walked away. I stood there, rooted to the ground. My brother had explained himself, but I still couldn't bring myself to accept it what he had said. Itachi paused.

"Are you going back to Orochimaru for another round, or coming with me?"

I set my jaw and followed him. Part of me wished he never told me the reason he killed the clan. It would be all that more difficult to hate him, since it seemed my own mind was having problems dealing with the controversial issue. My brother stopped and sat down, resting his back against a large boulder.

"Come and sit. You're exhausted from your exertions. We wont be traveling any more tonight. Orochimaru wont be after you with his best man out of commission." Itachi smirked. "He still has another day of pain ahead of him." My brother's eyes shifted again, but it was soon gone. He glanced up at me. "Sasuke, stop standing around and come here."

I had been standing there uncomfortably, not wanting to go to my brother, yet at the same time feeling the weariness of my legs. I gave in to my fatigue and went into his welcoming arms. I didn't even consider why he was being so kind and gentle to me. We hated each other, didn't we? Hell, I was too tired to care. I nuzzled up to his warmth and instantly found myself drifting off with Itachi's scent clouding up my mind with memories of happier times.

* * *

Aww, Itachi can really be a sweetheart when he tries. I really planned to make this chapter much longer. I was going to hold off and continue writing, but I knew that if I did, I would not be able to post for at least four or five more days. I have a piano exam (eep!) on Wednesday, and really need to focus all my energies on that, and then I can write more. So here's a slightly shorter chapter to satiate you guys for a while. I'll continue this as soon as I can. Thanks for all of your support. 


	7. Love Me

Sorry for the long time before an update, but I went for a week on a trip to visit my friend, and then it was hard to get back into the loop of writing. My updates may be slightly delayed due to university starting again, and my schedule for first semester (labs every single day!) makes me want to shoot myself. Thanks for the luck everyone, but I totally messed up on my piano exam due to an unexpected nervous breakdown during it. Never happened before to me, but I guess there's a first time for everything. Oh well…I'm quitting anyway. Too stressful.

Ugh, I am so mad that I'm not allowed to respond to reviews anymore. Such a stupid rule. Grr…I liked doing it too, and I had all my reviews responded to for the last chapter and I just had to delete them all. I will answer one, since I think blisblop made a good point: why didn't Itachi just kill Orochimaru?

I figure the reason Itachi didn't kill Orochimaru in the first place was because he wanted to join the Akatsuki, and killing a top member of the organization was generally not the way to go. Another reason is that it would almost be too easy. He really did want to measure his power, and it would be much more difficult and impressive to wipe out his entire clan rather than just one person. Though I doubt he'd tell our beloved Sasuke that he wanted to kill the clan. After he joined the Akatsuki, he was advised not to kill Orochimaru, because the nin's actions might prove advantageous for the organization. However, I'm sure if Orochimaru ever hurt Sasuke in any way, Itachi would not hesitate to give him an excruciatingly painful death.

* * *

Chapter 6: Love Me

I moaned and nuzzled up, trying to find a comfortable warm spot so I could settle back to sleep. What I felt was a cold hard surface, and I opened my eyes to see I had been nestled up to the boulder. I sat up and looked around, Itachi nowhere in sight.

"That bastard," I snarled under by breath. What was with him leaving me to wake up cold and alone after acting so uncharacteristically affectionate? It pissed me off. Was it too much to want to wake up in his arms? Yeah, yeah I knew I was a hypocrite, and I didn't give a damn anymore. I got up and brushed the dirt off my clothes before setting out to search for my forsaking brother.

Voices alerted me to his possible presence, and I followed them to find my rather annoyed brother glaring at the blue-skinned Akatsuki he had spoken with before. The stranger turned and looked at me with creepy eyes as I approached.

"So this is your little brother? Heh, looks a little scrawny to me."

I tensed and balled my fists, reminding myself not to let my temper get a hold of me. My brother didn't even bother to turn his head to acknowledge my presence.

"Leave him be, Kisame. Leave us both. I told you not to bother me until I was ready to come back. And I am not ready."

Kisame folded his arms. "And what am I supposed to tell the others? You went off on a little vacation?"

"Tell them whatever the hell you want," said Itachi softly. "If they have a problem with it, they can take it up with me personally. Besides, I thought Diedara was working with Sasori on this one. They can prepare themselves all they want. I know who my target is, and I'll be ready to get it when the time is right."

"While babysitting that runt?" snorted Kisame. Itachi's eyes flashed, and the shark-man smirked. "Ooh, hit a nerve, did I?"

I could see Itachi raise his head to look up at him, and Kisame instantly flinched away and whirled around to avoid eye contact. "Shit, Itachi, can't you take a joke? You shouldn't be using that so carelessly."

"I'll see you when I'm ready, Kisame. When _I_ am ready." Itachi turned and walked towards me, brushing past my shoulder. "Come, Sasuke."

I glanced back at a disgruntled Kisame before jogging to catch up to the long stride of my brother.

"What was that about?" I questioned him as we walked.

"Stay out of my affairs, Sasuke. That is all."

I shut my mouth, knowing Itachi wouldn't be good for conversation for a long while. We kept walking for a few more hours, and I was going to ask where we were headed, but the irritated look on my brother's face stopped any words from coming out. Finally he stopped and I did the same.

"Fight me."

"What?" My eyes widened. I wasn't prepared for this. Just what was he expecting from me?

"Don't hold back. Show me everything that you are capable of. My goal at the moment is to train you so you are beyond the reach of Orochimaru. Then maybe you'll finally be able to take care of yourself."

"I can take care of myself just fine," I snapped. "I went to Orochimaru on my own free will."

"And I'm sure you could leave on your own free will," stated Itachi, raising an eyebrow. "I thought not. Come on."

I pulled out my kunai with a sigh. Already I knew this was going to be a depressing match. I didn't want to go all out only to have my ass handed back to me by my brother because I was nowhere near his skill level.

Itachi tilted his head to the side and waited for me to make a move. "I'll go easy on you by only using physical attacks. Now stop stalling."

I conjured up images of my mother and father, dead on the floor, with my brother standing over their bodies, their blood staining his clothes. I took all the rage and pain and concentrated it to serve as my motivation for the attack. I would be able to see just how far ahead Itachi was in skill, and it could serve as a measure of how much farther I needed to advance in order to bring him to his rightful end.

So I lunged at Itachi and gave him everything I had. I came so far since the days of the academy and team training, but once again I felt like the child I was, believing I was something truly extraordinary. I remembered fighting with Kakashi and not getting in a single blow despite my efforts. Now it was just a repeat, but with Itachi. No matter how fast I was, he was two steps ahead of me with a block and counter attack. Looking into his face as I made another attack, I was ashamed to see his eyes closed. He wasn't even bothering to use his sharingan to read my moves. He had placed all these handicaps on himself while I fought relentlessly, not getting even a tiny scratch against his pale skin. To say it was frustrating was a supreme understatement. I finally stepped away from him, panting and sore.

"Are you finished already?" Itachi arched an eyebrow and opened his crimson eyes.

I glared back.

My brother shook his head in disappointment. "We have a long way to go. Really, I'm surprised Orochimaru has any interest in you. It would seem to be such a pain to have to train you up so far in order for you to be useful to him."

"Can you please keep the insults to a minimum?" I hissed. I was already in a bad mood and didn't need my brother's encouragement. "How do you expect me to improve when you don't show me how?"

Itachi shrugged. "I did well enough on my own. Aren't you an Uchiha prodigy?"

"Maybe to everyone else in that village, but the amount of skill you expect from me right now is ridiculous. You can't measure me by the same scale as yourself."

Itachi raised an eyebrow. "Oh really? Why can't I?"

"Because we aren't the same," I snapped.

"I beg to differ. The only difference I see is your abnormally slow progression."

Was he trying to get me riled up again? I could hardly hear his words anymore from the blood pounding in my head. I shut my mouth, not wanting to encourage his sneering remarks.

Itachi cupped my chin. "Calm yourself, brother. Fighting in a rage only makes you clumsy. It's going to be tedious training you, though. It will certainly take more time than I am able to spare, but that can't be helped. The protection of the sharingan is my first priority."

"What about _my_ protection?" I snapped. "Is this all about the sharingan?"

Itachi stared at me. "Is it about anything else?'

"Jerk," I hissed. All those touches, all those kisses, I knew they meant something, at least to me. How dare my brother claim that all this was only for the sharingan. I grabbed him by the collar of his robes and pulled him down to my height. I think the only reason he didn't resist was because he was curious as to what I planned to do. I planted my lips firmly on his to prove my point. "The sharingan means nothing. It's just an advantage in battle by being able to mimic an opponent's moves. That is the only meaning it holds."

"And was your kiss supposed to hold meaning?" Itachi slyly asked.

"I know you love me Itachi! Why can't you just admit it! You always tell me that I can't hate you, but that's only because you can't bring yourself to hate _me_. All this time you've been looking out for me, and you're even putting me above your duties with the Akatsuki. For me, that means something, but I want to hear it right from your mouth."

"Do you?" Itachi asked, leaning close to my ear. His breath tickled it and I shivered.

"Say it," I commanded, trying to keep my voice even.

"You fool, Sasuke," he chuckled into my ear and moved away. Once again, I was faced by his back. Brother, you can be such a frustrating idiot.

I dug my hands into my pocket and trudged after him, feeling slightly pouty. How unlike me. I hadn't acted this childish since, well, when I was a child following Itachi around. My brother's voice snapped me out of my thoughts.

"If your affections for me grow too much, it will only be harder for you when you try to kill me."

"I'll kill you when I feel like it," I snapped. Right now, I just wanted to be accepted. His death would be empty for me if I couldn't look into his eyes as an equal. And it would prove me even stronger if I was able to conquer my feelings and kill him. "Perhaps if you would stop sending me mixed-messages, I could cope with this better."

Itachi simply chuckled and kept walking. "But it's so difficult to say 'no' to those eyes. They really can be quite pitiful sometimes." I couldn't see his smirk, but I could hear it in his voice.

I grabbed the back of his robes in childish retaliation. He whirled around, and his crimson eyes made me freeze on the spot.

"You want me Sasuke. You want me to touch you." He ran his slender fingers down my body, causing me to shiver. "Your eyes do nothing to mask your emotions. Through them, I can see the very depths of your desires so clearly. Right now, you are scared and surprised by my sudden actions. You don't want me to stop, but you loathe the thought of me toying with you so easily like this. You're angry, because you're right in the palm of my hand."

Itachi tilted my chin up and smelled up my neck, sending a tingling up my spine.

"You like it when all my attention is focused on you. You crave it. When I look at anyone else, you become awash with jealousy, which you label as hatred. Don't shut your eyes Sasuke, I've already read how you feel. And I'm right, aren't I?" His fingers played across the hairs on the nape of my neck and I just wished I could melt away from that spot. I was completely vulnerable under his touch, and he already proved he could practically read my mind.

"Stop it," I choked, squeezing my eyes shut even tighter.

"I killed our father. I killed our mother. I killed all the friends you ever had."

"Stop it, I know."

"I left you with nothing but hate, yet you dare come back to me demanding love. You never learn, do you Sasuke?"

"Stop it, you're confusing me."

"Stop it, stop it. Those are just empty words. You're leaning into my touch. Your actions are what speak the truth."

My eyes snapped open. "I know you love me Uchiha Itachi! You can't mask that by baring my soul and using my own feelings as a shield! I don't need to see past your eyes to know."

Itachi stared at me expressionlessly and stroked my cheek one last time before removing his hands.

"If you think I love you Sasuke," he said softly, "You will only get hurt in the end."

And with that he left me standing there, wondering just why the hell I had placed my heart out on a platter and offered it willingly to my brother who had long forgotten how to feel. I felt stupid and ashamed with my accusations, because not once did I see the flicker of anything, much less caring, across his face. For all he gave away, his motivations were solely with the sharingan, and my body was simply a toy to play around with, and something for him to watch squirm in unrequited affection.

You love me Itachi. I wont believe anything else. I don't want to.

* * *

Once again, sorry for the lateness! I had a lot of trouble writing this chapter, and I still feel like it didn't go as smoothly as I had hoped. I'm not sure about the next time I can update, since classes start Monday, but I promise whenever I can I will update. Thanks to all of my loyal reviewers! Keep the feedback coming:) 


	8. Choices

WTF. I just got my mark back from my piano exam, and it's 80. That's insane. That must be mostly pity marks, because I swear, I was shaking and crying so bad that I couldn't play my scales or chords right. I even asked the examiner to skip an arpeggio because my fingers literally were shaking off the keys. There's no way in hell I did that well, and now my parents think I was just making a big deal out of it and that I truly played fabulously. That bothers me, a lot. If I was judging myself, I would've gotten a 50, tops. That's with pity marks. I guess I should be happy and take the mark, but I feel sort of wrong. My examiner let me off too easy. I guess it's over now though. Still quitting my lessons. Anyway, end rant and on with the story.

This is a nice long chapter to make up for the previous wait, and also for a possible long wait for the next update. I wanted to call this chapter "Bitchfight" but I refrained, lol.

* * *

Chapter 7: Choices

Stupid Itachi.

It has been nearly a month, and he acts as if I don't exist, except when he trains me. His definition of training is beating me up and being disappointed later that I didn't learn anything. Can't he see I'm trying? I can't learn if he doesn't show me anything properly.

He's been colder, more distant than usual too. And he was already distant to begin with. I link his behavior to my outburst about him caring, and I regret my accusation. It seems he's determined to prove me wrong. Any kiss I try to sneak him is either stopped or is clumsy and one-sided. He doesn't even tease me anymore. I sort of wish he still did.

Now he's sitting across from me on the other side of the campfire, just staring at the flames. His crimson eyes catch the glow of the fire and it reminds me of how he looked back when he first took advantage of me. The only time he ever did.

How could I have been so stupid? I pushed him even farther away. I should have kept my big mouth shut. It hurts that I'm a disappointment to him. I try to impress my brother, but everything I do around him comes off as mediocre. What happened to the days when I was back in Konoha, being fawned over by girls and a few guys simply for doing nothing? Now I was doing everything, and fawning after Itachi, and he didn't give a damn. I felt a bit of pity for Sakura and how I had treated her. Just a little. Not enough to actually care, but enough to make me feel sorry for me and my present situation. I really was a self-centered jackass. And Itachi wasn't even proud of that.

"Nii-san," I whispered softly.

Itachi raised an eyebrow. I hadn't called him that in ages.

"Nii-san, I'm sorry for—"

"Shut up, Sasuke."

"Okay."

Just what had crawled and stung him on the ass? I just wanted to apologize, but I could hardly bring myself to scowl at him. I tried a different angle.

"Why are you so bitchy all of a sudden?" Smooth Sasuke…smooth. I mentally smacked myself.

Itachi stared and stared. I forced myself to stare back. Finally he shut his eyes and spoke.

"You're taking so much of my time and you're not improving. It's frustrating, as I have many places I have to be and several things that must be done."

"Maybe if you'd teach me right, I'd learn something," I scoffed.

This comment didn't seem to please Itachi one bit. "If I am so unsatisfactory, you may leave anytime you want."

"Perhaps I will. I almost think Orochimaru got me farther than this. He could probably train me better."

My brother's tone didn't change but I could tell he was getting irritated. I was really trying his patience, but I figured I had irritated him enough already. Why stop now? Besides, I was feeling rather disgruntled and didn't have that loud annoying blonde to make sarcastic snaps at.

"Rescuing you from him would take even more of my time. Stop being a fool Sasuke."

"You always call me a fool. Can't you think up a better insult than that?" I sneered. So the past few weeks put me in a bad mood. Might as well ride it out and worry about the consequences later.

"What would be more fitting for me to call you then?"

I pursed my lips as I stared into the depths of his eyes. I could think of several things Itachi could call me for my behavior. Slut. Whiner. Nuisance. He was just too refined to say them.

"I'm trying to impress you Itachi!"

"What, by picking childish fights and being thick-headed?"

"No, by giving it my all when I fight you."

"So you really were trying everything you're capable of? How sad."

"The least you could do is help me along!"

"Tch. You progressed farther by being angered and attempting to hate me rather than now with your petty fawning."

I opened my mouth to protest, but he had stood up and was moving towards where I sat. He kneeled down and stared at me.

"So if I kissed you, I'd expect an exponential growth in your fighting ability? From my past experience, you just become clumsier. You're becoming weaker and weaker, Sasuke, and it sickens me."

His eyes began to shift and I quickly turned away, feeling the cold sweat upon my face. Had I not turned away… Still, the nerve of him, trying to use _that_ sharingan on me. He already did once, long ago, and I had ended up in the hospital for days, plagued by vivid dreams of my worst memories.

"You jerk." I heard my voice choked with tears, and I forced them back. I was acting just as weak as Itachi had said. But it really hurt. I really had become that vulnerable.

"Learn to hate me Sasuke. It seems to be the only way you know."

"I don't want to hate you," I whispered. I had believed I could, but looking back, I knew it was an impossible task.

Itachi was silent. I could feel his clothing rustling as he shifted position.

"I'm going to sleep Sasuke. Goodnight."

How like Itachi, not even bothering enough to finish our argument.

"'Night," I sighed, left hanging and still slightly angry. Our fight had accomplished nothing. Thinking of nothing better to do, I too tried to drift off into an uneasy sleep, knowing that Itachi was still on his guard, and would be alert to any danger that approached during the night. Despite everything he had said, I was confident that he would protect me.

- - -

The next morning was carried in silence from the aftermath of our tiff. I watched him pause in the middle of putting dirt on the remaining embers of the fire, and strained my ears to try and detect what had caused him to freeze. Someone was coming. By the sounds of it, they weren't trying to mask their movements; though even if they had I'm sure Itachi would have still picked up on their noise despite their stealth. I began moving towards the sound, and was surprised to have Itachi's hand grab my shoulder and hold me in place, while his eyes focused on the approaching noise. I was going to make a sarcastic comment, but figured it was better to allow Itachi to concentrate on the intruder in case it really was a major threat.

The bushes rustled and out stepped a rather disgruntled looking Kabuto. He didn't look like he was in top form as there were dark bags under his eyes and his hair was slightly ruffled. He didn't look pleased to be here, but he swallowed his discontent and took one more step towards us, stopping. He was still a few meters away, keeping his distance for his own security.

"Itachi, Orochimaru has sent me once again to tell you to stop playing around and hand over the boy." Even though his words were directed at Itachi, he kept his eyes locked on my own, never straying up to meet my brother's. I remembered the last time I had seen him was when he was writhing on the ground from the effect of my brother's Mangekyou, and it appeared that he had learned from that experience.

"You may tell your _master_ that my answer remains the same."

I knew I shouldn't have, but I was still angry at my brother's attitude, and for once I wanted to be the one to affect him. Complete stupidity, but what else is anger driven by? "What if I want to go?"

As expected, the grip on my shoulder tightened. Ha! So you do care, brother.

Kabuto looked slightly relieved that this might go easier than he had anticipated. "Well then come along, Sasuke. We mustn't keep Orochimaru waiting."

"I didn't say I would," I said, not moving and putting on a disinterested face like I had seen my brother display often. I turned my head slightly away. "Just what does Orochimaru have to give me upfront this time? You may be content being his little pet, but I will not sit around waiting for payment. I want power now. When Orochimaru agrees to abide by _my_ terms, I'll consider going with you." I faced him straight-on again. "Do you have a problem with that?"

The grip on my shoulder loosened slightly, and I hoped I had impressed Itachi just a little with my words.

Kabuto sighed. "You will get what you want in due time."

"That's not good enough for me."

"Look, you can come willingly now, or be taken by force later. The clock is ticking down, and Orochimaru will remember the state of your loyalty when the time comes. It is unwise to leave an unpleasant impression of you on him."

I rolled my eyes and scoffed. "Some impression he has made on me. I think he should be more concerned with that."

"I hate to have to use bribery, but you leave me no choice." Kabuto folded his arms. "If you wont come with us, then he'll just have to settle with taking Naruto."

"That dobe? Good luck with him, he's such an idiot that I'm sure all of Orochimaru's elaborate schemes will backfire in his hands," I scoffed.

But Itachi's grip on my shoulder had tightened so much I winced in the middle of my smirk.

"Your master is playing a dangerous game," Itachi said softly. I was surprised at the amount of menace laced in his voice.

Kabuto sneered back, but still his gaze was on me. "You leave him no choice, Itachi."

"Are you going to meddle in Akatsuki affairs? That is not wise."

"Are you going to ignore the Akatsuki's demands? Orochimaru knows all about it, and it seems the choice is up to you. It's a fair trade. You get what you want, and he gets what he wants."

Just what the hell did either of them want with that blonde idiot? Itachi did go after Naruto once before, but I didn't remember much of what had happened because soon after I was affected by his Mangekyou.

"Are you saying that Orochimaru has Naruto now?"

"He will," Kabuto stated casually. "As the time is fast approaching, there is more and more concern in Konoha about getting your little brother back. You see, they still think he has gone to Orochimaru. After all, where else would he be? Certainly not with the murderer of his clan."

"And you're saying Naruto is with this rescue team?"

Kabuto just smirked.

I couldn't see my brother's face from behind me, but I could tell his eyes were narrowed. "Why are you disclosing so much information?"

The silver-haired nin shrugged. "Perhaps you will be more cooperative if we remain on good terms. Either way, Orochimaru will get what he wants in the end. He always does."

"He still has two years before Sasuke will be of any use to him."

"Time does go by quickly. And it's always better sooner than later. I doubt Konoha is going to wait until the last minute to try and reclaim Sasuke. After all, the longer he's with Orochimaru, the harder it will be to draw him away. Now you can go and try to snag Naruto after handing over Sasuke. He must be a thorn in your side, always getting in the way."

I scowled darkly. I was right in front of him, and he was watching me as he spoke; yet he pretended I wasn't there to hear his words.

Kabuto continued. "Or you can always anger the Akatsuki by failing your mission, which I'm sure will go over well with the rest of the gang. You see, Orochimaru likes to give you choices."

Itachi seemed deep in thought. Once again, I was left in the dark.

"You better hurry, after all, time is running out. If they reach Orochimaru's lair, it will be too late for you." Kabuto smirked and backed into the bushes, turning and disappearing into the foliage.

"What the hell was all that?" I asked, but was stopped by my brother roughly brushing past me.

"We need to intercept Naruto and this supposed rescue team, if they do indeed exist as Kabuto claims."

"Why?" I sighed, rolling my eyes. So the dobe gets there, finds out I'm not present and gets mad. I already told him I wasn't coming back.

"Those Konoha idiots, why would they bring such a valuable thing along for such a risky task?" Itachi muttered, walking quickly. "Come Sasuke."

I scowled and jogged to keep up. "Are you going to explain or not?"

"Kabuto and Orochimaru are expecting me to need to get Naruto before he reaches them. While I'm focused on retrieving that boy, you will be open for the taking. And you're still so weak."

"It's not from lack of trying," I growled. "Besides, how hard can it be to take down that dobe?"

"Fool Sasuke, think! If they plan to infiltrate Orochimaru's lair, then there will be several high-level jounin with him."

"So they see I'm not with Orochimaru, and they don't go there. Problem solved. But what the hell do you want with Naruto?"

"That is my business alone, Sasuke, though I'm surprised what little intellect you possess has failed you in deciphering the reason why."

"It's the Kyuubi, isn't it?"

Itachi didn't answer me and continued to walk.

I gave an exasperated sigh. I was going to beat Naruto up well this time for coming after me again after I had made it clear that I had no interest in returning.

"You don't even know how close they are to Orochimaru's lair," I reasoned, having trouble keeping up with my brother's long stride.

"If I know Orochimaru, he would have timed Kabuto to disclose this information at a time that is most convenient for him. In other words, Naruto must be getting close. It will be much more difficult to retrieve him if he actually enters the lair."

I was about to state that Itachi had no problems extracting me the first time, but thought before I spoke. Sure, Orochimaru was pissed that he took me, but the resistance wasn't all that great. Probably because it wasn't urgent that I be there at that time, it just was convenient. My brother was one of the most powerful people I knew, but sheer numbers and force I'm sure would eventually overtake him. He was right. It was better to intercept Naruto beforehand. Though I wondered why the hell we had to intercept him at all.

"I don't know what you're going to do with Naruto, but I'm telling you right now he's mine. He's the key to my Mangekyou, and only I get to kill him."

Itachi hardly spared me a glance. "Fool, if and when you kill me, you will receive your higher sharingan. That boy is vital to us."

By "us" I assumed he meant the Akatsuki. I didn't know much about their plans, but what little I did know made me uneasy. I would never admit it to anyone, but I was scared of the Kyuubi. I had seen the raw and unending power that Naruto possessed with his red chakara, and if that was just working through a host… I didn't want to get tangled in what I thought the Akatsuki were planning. And a part of me didn't want Naruto to get involved either, even if it meant pissing off my brother.

In a way to adapt to my feelings for my brother plus the reasons he told me for killing my clan, I had transferred all my anger and hatred towards the Akatsuki. I now blamed them for what had happened. I'd like to believe my brother wouldn't have gone through with the massacre if he had never caught wind of such an organization. So even if it went against my brother's wishes, I had now sworn my vengeance on them, and if I could screw up their plans any, that would satisfy me.

If my brother found out, I'm sure he'd wring my neck.

I kept pace, running alongside my brother and leaping through the foliage until he suddenly came to a stop. I looked warily around, keeping an eye out for Kabuto or Naruto. I was not going to have the embarrassing indignity of being kidnapped against my will by either of them. That would give more reason for Itachi to belittle my skills.

I waited until Itachi was done taking in whatever scene he was watching—frankly, I only saw bushes and trees, though a slight rustling up ahead did inform me that there was something close by. We both crept closer. Well, I crept. Though Itachi remained absolutely silent, he stood tall and confident as he walked. As we got closer, I spotted a familiar mass of bright blonde hair.

It appeared that the jounin were going over plans before arriving at Orochimaru's. I recognized this area; we were about a mile or two away from the lair. Naruto was fidgeting and pacing as the more experienced nin reiterated their strategy, no doubt for the fifth time. Naruto was never one to sit around and listen. That would go against his rather rash and reckless nature.

His clothing had changed a little. He had incorporated more black into his jacket so that it wasn't so much of an eyesore. The brilliant orange still remained, though. He had replaced the fabric of his leaf head-protector so that it was longer, also black. My forehead tingled slightly, remembering the feel of my former leaf headband that I had worked so hard to obtain, and rejected in the end. Naruto had grown and physically matured, but just seeing him pace around like that told me it was the same old Naruto.

Itachi had stopped watching them and instead scanned his eyes around the area, no doubt trying to pick up any sign of Kabuto or Orochimaru's men. I noticed that he stayed rather close by my side, probably as prevention to me getting suddenly snatched. I scowled. I wasn't _that_ helpless.

My brother silently backed away from the clearing, and I followed him until we were out of hearing. He brought me close and I felt a shiver run down my back as his lips pressed against my ear.

"I have no doubt that Kabuto and others are in wait to take you while I'm distracted by the jounin. I want you to grab Naruto and run. Find a safe place to hide, and I'll catch up with you when I deal with the other distractions. Do you think you can handle such a simple task, my brother?"

"Of course I can," I hissed. "I'm not as weak as you take me to be."

"You're in a whole different league, Sasuke. We're not talking about your strength among schoolchildren." Itachi straightened. "Do not allow yourself or Naruto to be captured. I will be incredibly displeased and disappointed if you do." Without another word, he turned and headed back to where the group was. I followed, prepared to do as he said, and show him that I had some worth.

Even still, the back of my mind plotted how to get Naruto away from _him_ afterwards. The Akatsuki were not going to take another thing from me.

The jounin had finished their discussions, and it looked like they were ready to go. Naruto was grinning and on his feet, eager to be moving. I remained concealed in the bushes as Itachi walked calmly out in front of them. My brother was always one for his entrances. I saw the jounin stiffen and tense at his sudden presence, their hands already on their weapons. During this distraction, I circled around, positioning myself closer to Naruto.

I didn't pay attention to what Itachi was doing. If I knew anything, it was that he could handle himself. Before Naruto could throw himself recklessly into the fray, I grabbed him from behind and pulled him into the bushes, covering his mouth with my hand.

"You dobe, that's how people get killed," I hissed. I was amused to see his bright blue eyes widen in shock.

"You are very right, Sasuke," came Kabuto's voice from behind me. Itachi had been right about Orochimaru's plan. Without even looking back at him, I grabbed Naruto and sprinted forward into the fight. Naruto gave a yelp of protest as I dodged past the fight between the jounin and my brother, knowing full well that Kabuto was hot on my heels. I slid on my sharingan as I ran, any help that I could give my senses would be beneficial. Sounds in the trees above alerted me that Kabuto had help in capturing me.

Out of the corner of my eye, I spotted the medical needles being thrown at us. Cursing, I threw my weight over to the side, dragging Naruto with me so that they missed. Escaping would be a hell of a lot easier without having to drag the moron along with me.

"Sasuke, what the hell is going on?" said moron yelled out from behind me.

"Just shut the hell up and run. This is not the time to be discussing things!" I shouted back.

I knew that Kabuto was trying to run us into a trap by having us blocked off by his allied nin, and I had to prevent that from happening at all costs, and somehow get him off our tail. I pictured my brother's face and sardonic voice preaching that I wasn't good enough. That served to increase my determination to somehow get out of this mess. I could do this. With a sudden burst of energy, I increased my speed, weaving in and out of the trees and trying not to maintain a straight path. Naruto protested but soon shut up, straining to keep up under penalty of being dragged, as my hand was locked onto his wrist.

I cursed. This would be so much easier if we could clone ourselves. Wait, that was it! It was risky, but it could work. I had seen that dobe use it often, and somehow it worked for him. With my sharingan, I could copy his jutsu. The only issue was timing. We were running full paced, closely followed. There wasn't much time to perform any sort of jutsu. But it was our only hope. I couldn't keep up this pace for long, and soon I'm sure Naruto and I would be closed in.

"Naruto, I need you to listen to me carefully."

In the blonde's credit, he sped up his pace dramatically so that he was level with where I was. I released his wrist so he could run freely. He at least understood the seriousness of the situation, and that we could not get caught.

I lowered my voice as much as I possibly could to prevent Kabuto or anyone other than Naruto from hearing.

"I need you to use your copy jutsu to make a large number of clones of yourself. I'll mimic you with my sharingan so that there will be copies of both of us. Maybe then we can escape this."

"We don't have time!" Naruto protested.

"We have to try. Otherwise, we're not getting out of this!" I snapped.

Naruto sighed and nodded as we ran. "On the count of three then."

I nodded.

"One…"

We wove in and out of the trees, my stamina slowly slipping away. Still, we did our best to increase our speed even more, putting as much extra distance between Kabuto and the others as possible in preparation.

"Two…"

When was the last time I had worked with this dobe as a team?

"Three!"

Naruto skidded to a stop and started his hand seals as fast as he possibly could. I put my entire focus onto his movements, my hands mimicking his in time as he performed them. There wasn't enough time, Kabuto was practically on us, I could feel the air move over my skin as his hand extended to grab me…

There was a soft 'poof' sound and suddenly the woods were filled with twenty pairs of Naruto and myself. I dodged out of Kabuto's grasp and grabbed the real Naruto, continuing our escape. I could hear Kabuto curse from behind us. I wove in and out of the clones, doing my best to have the sound nin loose track of the originals in the mass of copies. I glanced over to Naruto, and he grinned. It was working.

Each pair went off in a different direction, and Naruto and I headed off in our own. We just had to loose Kabuto and Orochimaru's men before they could pinpoint us when the clones disappeared. I spared a quick glance back to be pleased to see Kabuto in pursuit of a pair of the copies. I could see some more of the sound nin now and none of them seemed to be able to pinpoint the originals. I took the opportunity to duck into a shallow cave that suddenly caught my eye. I had almost missed it while running past, as the entrance was obscured by a bush; but thanked luck for my observation.

Naruto gasped in surprised at the sudden change of direction, and I clapped my hand over his mouth as we panted in the darkness of cave, waiting for the sounds of pursuit to die away. I could feel my shoes becoming coated in mud from the damp bottom of the cave and the smell wasn't all that pleasant, but it was better than being captured. See Itachi? I'm not completely useless.

Naruto and I sat in heavy silence, staying as far back into the cave's shadows to keep from getting detected should any of them come across the hollow. I was starting to get my breath back, and pulled out some water to quench my raw dry throat. I paused after I drank and offered it to Naruto, who took it eagerly, taking a drink himself. Once again, a tense silence reigned, both of us afraid to move or make the slightest sound.

After a long while, I couldn't detect any other sounds, except for the natural noises of the forest. I relaxed a little and leaned against the wall.

"We did it," I sighed in relief.

Naruto's blue eyes turned to me. Confusion was swirling in them, but then again, that was just natural. That dobe always seemed to be at a loss of something or other at any given time. "Sasuke, what's going on?"

I folded my arms. "I told you that I wasn't going back. Just what the hell were you thinking coming after me again? I thought I had made my intentions clear the last time we met." I remembered the fight to the death that we had been involved in, and in the end, I couldn't bring myself to kill him. Another weakness.

"You're an idiot for going to Orochimaru in the first place!" Naruto said, a slight hint of anger laced into his voice. "If anyone's going to make you see straight, the mistake you're making, it might as well be me."

I shifted to a more comfortable position and looked at Naruto with my classic 'do I give a shit?' look.

Much to my satisfaction, Naruto gritted his teeth. "Not only are you hurting yourself, but you going to Orochimaru could lead to all of Konoha being destroyed!"

I shrugged. "What do I care of that place? They didn't care all that much when my entire clan was wiped out."

"Sasuke, Konoha is your home!"

"I have no home."

"Yes you do!" Naruto shook my shoulders roughly. "You can't just turn your back on all of us for your own selfish purposes. I wont let you!"

I removed his hands roughly from me, giving him a cold look. "I'll do whatever the hell I please, dobe."

"You're such a bastard Sasuke! You don't even acknowledge all the effort we're putting into trying to bring you back. Orochimaru will only hurt you, he wont give you anything! You don't need him to become strong. We were sent out to try and get you back _again_ and try to talk some sense into you before it's too late! And I came along, because those jounin were told that they could kill you if they felt it necessary in order to keep you out of the hands of Orochimaru, and I wasn't going to let that happen. For once, swallow your goddamn arrogance and listen to me!"

"I can make my own decisions," I said, glaring at him.

"You make all the wrong ones! You can't let revenge control you."

My hand flew around his throat, squeezing slightly. "I know what I'm doing. Stay out of my way."

Naruto grit his teeth into a snarl, his fingernails digging into my wrist. "Bastard, can't you see that there are people that care about you?"

"The point is, I don't care. I'm carving my own path." I released my grip. "Besides, if you weren't being such a moron, you'd realize that we were escaping from Orochimaru's men. Do you think that's the behavior off someone who's working alongside him as his puppet?"

Naruto opened his mouth, then shut it.

I smirked. "You have no clue what the hell I'm doing. You couldn't understand my goals, and I'll get them my own way without your interference. You and him. All of you. You underestimate me."

"Him?" Naruto cocked his head to the side.

Shit! I didn't mean to say that out loud! Regaining my composure, I glared. "Shut up, dobe."

It was quiet for a little while as I tried to think of how to execute the next part of my plan. We had escaped Kabuto, but how to escape Itachi? He was much cleverer than the sound-nin, and I had to somehow get Naruto out of here and at the same time meet up with my brother. I still wanted his training, despite his insults about my abilities. I also wanted to be with him more, though I didn't like admitting it to myself.

He would have many snide remarks about "loosing" Naruto when I showed up empty handed, but I could handle them. I knew I was capable. But could I really pull the wool over Itachi's eyes? I had to hurry and think of something. I had no doubt in Itachi's ability to find us. Now if only I could get the dobe to understand the seriousness of the situation. By the look on him, he was still stuck on the belief that I was really still going after Orochimaru.

What an idiot.

* * *

Hm, there might be some SasuNaru hints in this fic, though I'm not decided as to whether I'll make them prominent or questionable. This fic is primarily ItaSasu, though, and that will be the final and main pairing regardless.

So hopefully it's true that not being able to respond to reviews is just some nasty untrue rumor flying about. I went over the rules _again_ and I can't find anything specifically saying that I can't respond, so I'll just take a possible risk and respond anyway. Fifty reviews…I love you all! 'sniffsniff'

**Sunshine Pie** – I would like that a lot. 'envisions Sasuke in an apron and dress scolding Itachi in a suit, laying back on a recliner with coffee and a newspaper' And they should have an off-white picketed fence and a cat and… 'rambles on'

**riikaa** – Yep, pure denial. And he likes to watch Sasuke squirm in agony. That's just Itachi for ya, lol.

**Patty** – Heh, I bet Sasuke's thinking "I wonder what the others would think if they could see me now." He always viewed himself as superior in skill before he ran into his brother. He also thought he was as emotionless as a rock. Then of course, he met with his brother. Lol, poor Sasuke. He's trying to live up to his ideals, but it's so hard when his brother is better at everything than him. And thanks for pointing out the sharingan mistake. I didn't realize I was leaving out the 'n.' I just type it really fast and glance over it when I proofread. It's fixed now, and I'll be more careful in the future.

**rAiNwAtEr** – Itachi needs a good emotional kick to get him to reveal his feelings openly. Poor Sasu's all confused and upset by his mixed-messages, and just wants his brother to come clean that he cares for him.

**tidAL rabbiT** – Yeah, Itachi's a meanie. But he does have a soft spot for his brother, even if it isn't obvious.

**kawaii kitsune-kun** – If you're right, I love you. Thanks for informing me; I missed responding to you guys.

**mayfaire** – Meh, Sasu's getting desperate for attention because he's scared Itachi will leave any minute. And we all know Itachi loves his little brother. He's just not one to express feelings, and he also doesn't want to get Sasuke's hopes up, because if he did Sasuke may not be able to fight him later and kill him. Also, admitting his feelings of Sasuke would be admitting his own weakness, and Itachi dislikes appearing weak. Yet another reason is that if he brings his feelings out into the open, to him, that would make them more real and could lead to them growing, and he has to be prepared in an emergency situation to do away with Sasuke. Basically, he doesn't want another repeat of Shisui. Wow I'm long winded when it comes to Itachi, but I guess that's because he expresses so very little in the fic compared to Sasuke. And Itachi's meeting with Kisame certainly does reveal a very different and somewhat overprotective Itachi compared to how he treats Sasuke later. 'is bowled over by the 'better writer comment'' No way! You are unbelievably amazing and I worship the fics that come out of you. Neji in a kimono never looked so good! If all else fails with said plagiarist, just report the fic I guess.

**Catherine Lewie Rain** – Glad you liked it. :) And thanks for being so patient. Lol, you're more patient than me. Even I get antsy if I don't update in a few weeks, and I'm the writer.

**myworld101** – I have such trouble stating my favorite Naruto pairing, because I love so many. But Uchihacest is certainly one of my top ones. Heh…Sasuke will grow. Give him time. ;)

**Actora** – The pairing is too rare for my liking, lol. And I will do my best to update whenever I can, even as I'm swamped with work.

**UchihaMangekyou** – Lol, I was worried people would think I had died or something, since I'm usually quick to update. Nah, I'm still here, still writing, though probably not as much due to classes starting. However, if during finals my writing cuts off abruptly, you can assume the studying killed me. :P


	9. Awkward Moments

There's some slight SasuNaru (or NaruSasu, whatever floats your boat) in this chapter. Just as a warning, and the final pairing _will be_ ItaSasu. I will stay true to that, so no whining. ;) Reviews are dealt with at the end.

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Chapter 8: Awkward Moments

"So you're coming back, right?"

I nearly smacked my head, and refrained from giving Naruto a nice blow to the jaw.

"Forget it. I'm done with that place."

"Sasuke, what is out there for you? Home is where you belong, with your friends."

I turned to him with a sneer. "Friends? Is that what you think you are to me, a _friend_? Sorry to disappoint you, dobe, but I have none. I'm an avenger."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Will you shut up about all that "avenger" crap? Look, your brother did what he did. He'll get his own sometime; it doesn't have to come from you."

"That's where you're wrong," I said, my patience wearing thin. "It's coming from me. I _want_ it to come from me. Now hurry up."

"Okay, so if you're going to stay stubborn, and we're _not_ going home, just where are you taking me?"

"Quiet. Your voice is far too loud and jarring." I darted my eyes around, trying to detect any signs of my brother as I stuck my head out of the cave mouth. Sensing nothing, I motioned for the fox-child to follow me out. Thankfully he did so without complaint.

I couldn't answer him as to where we were going, because I had no clue. Where could I possibly take him that Itachi would not be able to get his hands on him? It seemed like a hopeless task. Well, you have to start out somewhere, so I logically decided to keep going in a direction opposite from Itachi's location. Hopefully those jounin could hold him off a little longer.

Listen to me, conspiring against my own brother. My own brother that I am infatuated with. I must be crazy. I had to remind myself that I was doing this for his own protection; he did not have to be a puppet to the Akatsuki any more than I had to be a puppet to Orochimaru. We could get through this world together, the two of us. We didn't need any of them. What a sickeningly sentimental thought. I think Itachi would gag if he heard me, if that was his style.

I kept Naruto walking for the majority of the day, until twilight was finally setting in. The blonde opened his mouth to protest several times, but I shut him up quickly. The idiot didn't even know I was helping him. He should be on his knees, grateful for my treachery to my own blood. He wasn't even worth the effort, but keeping the Kyuubi away from the Akatsuki was. As long as the fox demon resided in Naruto, I would have to put up with the blonde during our escape.

Looking around, I tried to find some place we could rest the night. I certainly wasn't going to sit out in the open with a campfire; that would just scream out my location to Itachi or Kabuto. Still, I had no brilliant plan on how to evade them if we did meet up. There were no caves that I could see in this area, and sleeping in a thorny bush was something I'd rather not have to do. Finally I spotted it: a tree hollow that seemed just big enough to squeeze the two of us in.

Naruto looked in it and looked back at me with a 'you've got to be joking,' look. I glared and shoved him inside in response. He yelped at the action, and I piled in after him before he could try to escape.

"Just quit your whining and make some space," I ordered. I didn't like the sleeping arrangements any more than he did, but at least we were hidden. Currently the dobe's elbow was digging into my collarbone and his legs were tangled in mine, jamming my knee into the rough inside wall of the tree.

"It's too tight in here! Ow, you've got your elbow in my stomach! I think there are spiders crawling all over me."

"Just shut up," I hissed.

"What are we running from anyway? Orochimaru?" he asked. In the dim light I could see him tilt his head to the side in confusion.

"Partially. Now stop asking questions." I tried to shift around a little to find a more comfortable position. Naruto gave a squeak of protest that I ignored. Figuring that my new posture was as good as it was going to get, I relaxed a little, preparing myself to go into a sort of half-sleep.

Naruto was being strangely quiet, and I could hear his breath coming unevenly. His skin felt warm and I moved slightly closer. It was a cold night, and if I was going to have to be squashed up against the Konoha idiot, I was going to use him as my own portable fire as well. The blonde made a hissing sound through his teeth, and I wasn't sure if I had jabbed him painfully or not. Not that I cared if I did. After all, I could be back with Itachi, not helping this incompetent nin.

It was soon that I noticed I had something pressed uncomfortably against my leg. I shifted around to lessen the prodding, causing a strange squeak to come out of Naruto.

"What's the matter with you dobe?" It was just then I realized just what was against my leg, and I could almost see the blonde's face glowing a brilliant red in the darkness. "Ugh, fuck, what the hell's wrong with you?" I said, squirming away as much as I could, not succeeding in our enclosed space.

"Would you stop moving?" Naruto said in exasperation. "How do you expect me to react with you rubbing up against me like that?"

I made an irritated and disgusted noise as I failed once again at trying to put some space in between us. Really, this was just plain uncomfortable in both a physical and emotional sense.

I could tell that Naruto was mortified. Hell, I was mortified, and it was only the start of the night. We were stuck here until morning, since there was no moon out tonight to light our way. Going out would just be begging to walk off a cliff or ram into a tree. Trying to get my mind off the pressure that was now against my thigh, I shut my eyes to the dark and counted to ten. Whatever moron said that the method worked was wrong.

Naruto began to hum to himself, probably trying a different method to distract him from the awkward situation. Unfortunately, like practically everything the blonde did, it grated my nerves to a point where I finally told him to shut up. There was silence for a little while before Naruto finally spoke up.

"Where are you going to go, if you're not going to Orochimaru's?"

Great, I was going to get into an in-depth conversation about my future aspirations while the blonde's obvious hard-on dug into my leg.

"Wherever the hell I please," I said, hoping the conversation would end there.

"Sasuke, I'm worried about you. You're pushing yourself too hard, you don't know what you're getting into, and you're being hunted down at the same time. Why wont you listen to anything I tell you?"

"Because it's hard to take you seriously at a moment like this," I said, rolling my eyes.

"Do you have to be a prick every second of your life?"

"To you, yes." If only Naruto knew how much more of a prick my brother could be.

Naruto let out a lengthy sigh. "I don't want to see you get hurt."

"I think that's my choice to make."

"That's unfair to everyone, especially me! We've worked so hard to try and protect you from your own goddamn self! You're just too stubborn. Sasuke, what do I have to do to get you to listen?"

"Well for one, you could shut u—"

I was cut off by a sharp stinging on my cheek. Did Naruto have a death wish? Picking a fight with me in an enclosed space was not smart. Kyuubi or no Kyuubi, he was going to get it.

"I-I'm sorry Sasuke," Naruto's wavering voice finally came through the darkness. Apparently, he hadn't realized he had slapped me until after he had finished. Well, it was too late for apologies by now.

I fumbled around in the dark for his collar, grabbing it roughly and pulling him close. Naruto yelped and tried to struggle away.

"I said I was sorry! Ow, Sasuke, you're hurting me!"

"You're such a whiner," I growled, "Quit acting like a baby and grow up." I drew back my fist to give him a nice solid punch when a noise outside made me freeze. Someone was coming closer. Naruto and I stayed frozen in the darkness, my fist still raised and my other hand clutching the blonde's shirt collar—now white-knuckled and sweaty. It was too dark to see, so we wouldn't be detected inside if they just looked, but all it took was a hand to reach in and feel the amount of flesh that was squeezed into the small hollow and we were done for. There was absolutely no way to escape, and not even enough room to manoeuvre.

Naruto and I held our breaths as the footsteps grew closer. I could hear them right outside the tree, and I willed myself not to cough as my throat went parch dry with fear. Thankfully, the footsteps kept going and soon faded off into the distance. When I was absolutely sure I couldn't hear them anymore, I finally allowed myself to relax, going slightly limp on Naruto as I breathed out a sigh of relief. I could feel both our heartbeats going at an unbelievably rapid pace. That was just too close.

Naruto was taking deep even breaths to calm himself down after the ordeal, and I could feel him shift position, his face brushing past my hair.

"Um…Sasuke?"

"What?"

"……Nothing."

I then realized how close I was to Naruto; hell, I was practically sitting/lying on top of him with my head buried in his shoulder. I could feel my face heat up as I moved slightly away, which wasn't all that far because I had gotten my ankle wedged in between the wall and the blonde's foot. Clearing my throat to try and hide my embarrassment, I turned my head away from where I knew Naruto's was. That only served to have his breath tickle my neck, and I flatly ignored the tingling sensation it brought.

"Sasuke?"

I flinched as his word sent a puff of hot air against my neck, and made sure to sound characteristically cold and indifferent when I opened my mouth to respond.

"What?"

"Why do you hate me?"

I paused, slightly taken aback by his words. "I don't have any hate to spare on you. That is reserved for my murderous brother." That's it Sasuke, lie through your teeth.

"I'm sorry for smacking you."

"Just shut up and let's try and get some sleep."

"Shouldn't one of us stay up to keep watch?" Naruto suggested.

"Watch what? It's pitch black. I don't know how good your vision is, but all I see is the dark. Besides, even if someone came, we're not going to be able to escape or fight back, so it doesn't really matter. Just get some sleep, dobe." I moved my leg slightly and finally surrendered to using the blonde's shoulder as a pillow. I was tired, and that was the softest thing I could rest upon. Naruto would just have to live with it.

I got no complaints from him, so I shut my eyes and allowed my mind to wander into a hazy wave of sleep. I could feel Naruto relax under me as sleep took me over.

- - -

I lay encased in comforting warmth and kept my eyes shut, afraid that it would dissolve away once the bright rays of reality set in. My face was buried in something soft and warm that smelled like earth and sweat, though not unpleasantly. The pressure I felt around my waist I took to be two arms wrapped around me. I had longed for this for a while. For once, brother, you didn't leave me cold.

Lifting my lashes to welcome the bright sunlight of morning and my brother's face—one which I hoped displayed at least the slightest smile—I was jarred to find myself staring at the sleeping face of Naruto. Memories flooded back from the previous night, and the painful cramping in my legs reminded me I was currently jammed in a tree hollow with him. Disgruntled and disappointed, I moved a bit, trying to regain feeling in my body.

Naruto groaned and squeezed his eyes shut tighter before bringing a lazy hand up from around my hips to rub at an eye. His unfocused blue eyes opened, before regaining their clarity and shifting to me. His mouth broke into a tired cheerful grin as he shook the last of his sleep off.

"Hey, did you sleep any better after?"

"After what? What are you talking about?" I asked, running a hand through my hair and trying to fix it without appeared too vain.

"Well, you seemed to have some sort of nightmare last night." Naruto asked. "I had to rub your back to calm you down, but afterwards you seemed pretty quiet. Don't you remember?"

"No," I stated bluntly. I had recalled my dream to be rather pleasant. Just what was this dobe going on about?

"Well, you were moaning your brother's name in your sleep."

Shit! I quickly forced down a blush that threatened to come. Better for Naruto to think I was moaning from pain than pleasure.

"I'm not a child anymore. Now let's get going." I moved into a better position to peek outside the hole. Anything to avoid extra questioning about my dream. The coast was clear, so I slid myself out. When I had finally been able to stretch my limbs fully, I realized just how cramped I had been in the hollow.

Naruto poked his head out of the hollow like some demented squirrel and looked around as well before leaping out.

"I wont ask you where we're headed, because I know you wont answer, but I'll go with you to make sure you're safe," he stated.

"I can take care of myself." At least Naruto was learning not to question my actions.

We maintained the same uncertain course as I tried to figure out just where the hell I could hide the blonde. We could go to another village, but the Akatsuki I'm sure were everywhere, so he wouldn't be safe. Things were looking pretty hopeless. I hated not having a direction.

To Naruto's credit, he followed without complaint, but at the same time I felt like complaining. We were just wandering, getting nowhere. If Naruto noticed, he didn't say anything. I stopped walking, thoughts and doubts in my head warring with each other. I should just let Naruto go back to Konoha; he was as safe there as any. Going up against the Akatsuki was too big of a job for me; I couldn't handle it. Like my brother said, I was weak and pathetic. It was stupid for me to try and do this.

Naruto paused and looked at me questioningly as I stood there. With a sigh, I hung my head. Forget it. None of this was worth the effort if it was all going to end in failure anyway. Turning around to go back in the direction we had come, I ran into a firm solid chest cloaked in red and black. Looking up, I confirmed why I hadn't sensed the presence sooner.

Itachi stared down at my shocked expression. "Where are you off to in such a hurry, Sasuke?"

I opened my mouth, but no words came out. I wasn't sure what to say. Just how long had brother been trailing us? Naruto was tense by my side, a kunai drawn in his hand. Itachi spared him a glance.

"At least you can do one thing right." He placed a hand on top of my head as he walked past me, advancing towards Naruto.

I stood staring straight ahead before quickly turning around and grabbing my brother's sleeve. He stopped without looking at me, his eyes focused on the defensive Naruto.

"What is it, Sasuke?" he asked softly.

My mind was a blank slate. I tried to grasp some sort of semblance of words, anything that would make Itachi listen. I failed.

Itachi stood there, waiting for me to speak up, and when I didn't he gave a small snort of annoyance. "Sasuke, let go of my arm." When I still did not respond, he turned his head partially to stare at me. "Sasuke."

I hung my head. "Onii-san…"

Naruto was looking shocked and wary at the rather comfortable and casual behaviour displayed between my brother and I. I suppose he had a right to be so, since every time I mentioned Itachi, it was also with colourful description of how I would tear him limb to limb. Here I was, clinging onto my brother's arm like some lost child, trying to communicate my silent need to his deaf ears.

Itachi pursed his lips together in displeasure and broke away from my grip. "It is getting late. Go get firewood for the campfire, Sasuke."

I hesitated, wary of leaving my brother alone with Naruto. What if I came back and they both were gone?

Itachi looked back when he realized I hadn't moved. "Go on. We're not going anywhere. Now do as I had said."

I nodded and headed off into the woods to gather some firewood. Though I had turned away quickly, I couldn't miss the painfully shocked and betrayed look written all over Naruto's face. Dobe. You should've known from the start that I wasn't to be trusted. You probably wouldn't believe I was trying to help you escape. I couldn't even do that right, and now it looks like we're both trapped. I'm sorry.

Since I knew the blonde couldn't read minds, my thoughts would be of no comfort to him.

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And now for review responses. Keep them coming guys. :)

**KagomeHigarashi** - Heh, I may have done well, but I sure as hell didn't play well. But thanks anyway. And I shall continue with this delightfully fun fic. :)

**Catherine Lewie Rain** - Lol, I've written the opposite of what I meant several times, lol, even in this fic. I think twice since I started this fic I've found errors where Sasuke saying the opposite of what he means. Quite humorous at times, but I'm glad I caught the errors before I posted. And don't worry, I like long reviews. :D

**Patty** - Ack! I've been spelling Konoha wrong forever if that's the case! Gomen, and thanks for pointing that out. I'll go back and fix it. Heh, I'm glad you like the twist. Lol, I was a little freaked out, because at the part where Naru and Sasu were running from Kabuto, I wasn't fully sure how they were going to get out of it, but just like Sasuke, I got a little lightbulb in my head and they did it. I have a vague outline of the events to come, since I actually wasn't planning on reincorporating Naruto back into the story, but liked the idea. It gives the fic a bit more flavour. And yes, we all have to love Sasuke...I know of far too many people that hate him, which shocks me, because you have to love him despite him being a jerk. You have to love him because he's a jerk! lol

**tidAL rabbiT** - Heh, he'll figure something out I'm sure. I have faith in our little Uchiha. Even if he doesn't, it should be an interesting ride.

**rAiNwAtEr** - I wanted to get my update in before I started classes, so I sat for a few hours on Sunday and just wrote and wrote and wrote until I got the long chapter to satiate you guys. It would be nice for Sasuke to be nicer to Naruto, but by force of habit and his pride, he'll probably be a jerk most of the time. Dear little Naruto will just have to put up with it.

**mayfaire** - Lol, I wanted Itachi to kiss Sasuke too in that scene, but knew he'd leave Sasuke hanging just to frustrate his little ototo just a little bit more. I hope for more ItaSasu smut soon, though I'm not sure when that'll occur. I just know it will, because I want it as a fangirl! Lol. And of course Sasuke would run into his brother again while trying to escape. You don't think Itachi would let him slip through his fingers like that, do you? ;)

**riikaa** - Itachi wont let that vile Kyuubi do anything to his precious Sasu-chan. Lol.

**WOZA** - Yeah, I figured Itachi needed a push in the right direction, since he was taking Sasuke for granted. 'shakes finger at Itachi' Less teasing and more smut!

**UchihaMangekyou** – Sweet! I would love that! One of my clones could eat for me too, since I have no time to eat between my 4 classes, then three hour lab, then another class that I have three times a week. I wish I could just sit at home and write. That would be bliss…

**myworld101** – From what I understand, Itachi was 13 when he killed the clan, and Sasuke was 9. If anyone knows different, please speak up. :)


	10. Jealousies

ADVENT CHILDREN IS AMAZING! 'drools all over Kadaj' Um…yeah…watched it in jap with subs. Can't wait for the English version to come out, because I'm definitely getting it. Square Enix is my hero. 'heart'

Since I haven't had a disclaimer in a few chapters: **I DO NOT OWN NARUTO OR THE UCHIHAS OR ANYONE!**

'Bout time we had another lemon! So if that's not your cup 'o tea, don't read. Kinda like this chapter. Much needed brotherly affection.

Edit: Corrected my spelling errors, plus toned down onii-chan to onii-san. Hope that's better. ' –chan' was a bit too much overkill. Thx for the feedback. :)

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Chapter 9: Jealousies

I walked back to camp, a small bundle of firewood nestled in my arms. My head was spinning from the recent development, and I did my best to ignore it. I should not feel any guilt. I went out of my way to help Naruto when I could've just handed him over to Itachi right away. The end result would have been the same, but the point was that I put the effort in. Unfortunately, that dobe didn't realize it.

I was just about to walk into our little clearing when I heard Itachi's voice. He was talking to the dobe? And the dobe was responding? Curious, I paused, listening as the words drifted softly to my ears.

"You might as well make yourself comfortable. I have no qualms breaking both your legs should you try to run, and I'd heavily advise you from picking a fight with me. I'm sure Sasuke has informed you of my…achievements."

"What? Being a murderer? I would hardly call that cowardly act an achievement!"

"Think what you wish." There was a slight pause, then, "I trust that Sasuke was a kind host for you."

"Kind, my ass. You both are in on this together. I don't understand why Sasuke would stoop so low as to help you after all you've done; I had higher respect for him than that. But it seems that both of you are born backstabbers."

"My my, such fury. Put away your kuani, it's useless." Itachi's voice raised slightly in volume. "Sasuke, I thought I told you years ago that it was rude to eavesdrop. Come and bring the firewood and stop dawdling."

My face flushed, and I made sure to force it back down before stepping out of the trees and depositing the firewood on the ground. Without raising my eyes to either of them, I worked on preparing the fire. I could feel Naruto's icy blue eyes boring into my skull.

Once I had a crackling fire going, I seated myself in the only cleared spot available: between Itachi and Naruto. My stomach was doing back-flips out of nervousness. I half expected Naruto to leap at me and start strangling my throat. After all, that's what I would have done in his position. My brother speaking up served to distract me nicely.

"It seems you went a little out of your way to escape Kabuto, Sasuke. I was surprised how far out you had traveled. It almost appears that you were taking a long route towards Konoha." He extended his fingers to the flames to warm them. Not once did he look at me, but I felt my heart flutter in fear. He knew something was up. Perhaps he knew of my entire plan of escaping with Naruto, maybe he didn't. But he knew enough that I was going much too far to simply be escaping Kabuto.

"I figured the farther away I went, the better." I didn't have to see Naruto's face to know he was scowling. I figured the only reason he hadn't taken off already was that he took Itachi's threat to break his legs seriously, which was the right thing to do, because I knew Itachi would do so.

"I see." My brother's voice betrayed nothing, but I knew he didn't believe me.

If anyone should be upset about the current turn of events, it should be Naruto. But I found myself upset that Naruto was there, because it hampered me trying to get Itachi's attention. I certainly wasn't going to pursue Itachi with the dobe sitting there, and it is embarrassing enough getting rejected continually without an audience. Besides, we were brothers, Naruto wouldn't understand. Hell, he didn't understand now. I always bragged that my main goal in life was to kill Itachi. Well, I certainly proved that wrong. I think he had a better grasp why I had self-exiled myself from Konoha, even if the original intention was altered.

Itachi stood up. "There are a few things I need to check on. Sasuke, keep an eye on Naruto, and if you both are not here when I return…" He left that hanging as he disappeared in a small puff of smoke.

Instantly, Naruto was on his feet. I grabbed his wrist and dragged him back down. The blonde snarled and lashed out at me with his kunai, which I deflected, pinning him against the trunk of a tree. His eyes blazed back at me angrily.

"Bastard. I trusted you. I came to protect you and this is the fucking thanks I get?"

I was surprised I had made him mad enough to curse, and put on my best 'bastard' face to play the role. "Well, I believe I told you—_repeatedly_—not to come back. If you can't follow simple instructions, then what the hell am I supposed to do about it?"

Naruto snarled. "I came back because I was worried about you! I wasn't going to abandon you like everyone else. I actually cared what happened to you! And now I see that you're just like your brother."

"Did I ever ask you to come play hero? You put me in a really awkward position, dobe, and frankly, it's your own fault for coming here."

"You jerk. You sadistic bastard. You run off saying you're going to Orochimaru, who wants to destroy all of Konoha, and instead I find you working for your brother. The same brother who took away everything from you and left you alone! I know you were affected by it! I could sense the pain that it caused you, but yet here you are working side by side for him!"

"You wouldn't understand!" I sputtered out, feeling a bit of panic rising.

"What is it Sasuke?" Naruto said, narrowing his eyes. "What did he promise you? The power from his organization? That sounds about right. That's all you ever wanted, power. You just used the excuse that it was to kill him, but it has always just been about the power. You don't give a damn about anything else."

"This is more than just power, Naruto!"

"Then what is it? Speak up, Sasuke. What the hell is this all about?"

I could feel my fingers trembling on his shoulders as I held him to the tree. The mask I had adorned was starting to crack slightly. That was why I was always so wary of Naruto, why I treated him so badly and did my best to keep him at a distance. I was scared of how he affected me. Somehow, the dobe always managed to break past my emotionless mask and see a crack of what was hidden behind it. I didn't like being read so easily.

"I'm doing this for my brother." My voice had the slightest waver, which I tried to conceal. "I know it's illogical. He stripped me of everything I had and left me with nothing. But I still have him, and that's all that matters."

"Just what are you saying?" Apparently, my statement had just added confusion, not lessened it. "Sasuke, he doesn't give a rat's ass about you. We do! _I_ do!"

"Shut up, SHUT UP!" I squeezed my eyes shut as I yelled. "I don't give a damn what any of you think of me! None have you have ever understood who I am! I don't want your pity; I don't need it. I'm old enough to make my own choices, and I don't care if you assess them as being the wrong ones. I'm allowed to make mistakes. I'm not going to Orochimaru, I'm staying with my brother, and if you had not been so stupid, you wouldn't be here, because now there's not a damn thing I can do about it!"

I looked up and felt a pain in my stomach at the hurt shimmering in Naruto's eyes.

"You're the dobe, Sasuke. It's you who doesn't understand."

And in that instant, I lost all coherent thought as his lips found mine.

I was spinning, I was falling, and there was nothing to hold on to. Just what the hell was going on? I messed up constantly, and the stupid dobe forgave me every single damn time, even as I yelled at him not to. I was too far gone, this was too much, I didn't want this, I didn't deserve it…

"Sasuke."

Itachi's voice snapped me out of my shock, and I broke away from Naruto, whirling around with wide eyes to meet his narrowed crimson ones.

"Get away from him."

I quickly and obediently moved away from Naruto, leaving him sitting against the tree, and staring up at Itachi in a mix of fear and determination. My cheeks burned with shame. How could I have been pulled into that? I could sense my brother's displeasure. God, how could I have let that happen? I couldn't meet his eyes as he sat down in between Naruto and I.

Everything was dead silence, broken only by the crackling sound of the fire. I was still taking in all that had happened. I spared a quick glance over at Naruto and my brother. Itachi was staring straight into the flames, as usual, but the very aura around him seemed menacing. Naruto caught my gaze with his own. I couldn't read his expression. The face that was usually an open book to me was shut, betraying nothing of his thoughts.

I should've been surprised by the kiss, but I wasn't. At least not in retrospection. We had always been close, maybe not willingly, but the connection had always been there. He was the closest thing to a friend I ever had, but there was still a large gap between us. I could never make him happy. I was too much of a jerk, and as such only deserving of a jerk. I wanted my brother, whether or not he wanted me.

But regardless of all this, I never wanted Naruto to get dragged into this rather dangerous situation. Now I was caught between him and my brother. It should've been an easy choice to make, but siding with my brother meant that I was assisting the Akatsuki, and siding with Naruto would be working against them, but that in turn would involve defying my brother. Just what the hell was I supposed to do?

I tried to catch my brother's eye, but he was ignoring me, as usual. If I could just get him to understand he didn't need the Akatsuki… But that would never work. Naruto was right. We Uchihas were primarily driven by our hunger for power. Trying to convince my brother to give up the Akatasuki would be equivalent to Naruto begging me before that I not go to Orochimaru.

Finally I could take the tension no more. I stood up and mumbled something about going to relieve myself. With that, I walked into the forest. The moment I was out of sight, I broke into a run. I was good at running. All throughout my life I had been running, from my memories, from the pain, from anyone who tried to offer me a friendly hand. Why was I so messed up? A coward, that's what I was. I was scared to get close to anyone for fear of loosing them. I had lost so much already…

Itachi was the only stable thing in my life. He wouldn't die easily. He was a constant, though I could never tell what was going through his mind, I at least had an idea of what he was like. He was the only link to a happier time I had as a child. If I lost him, I would truly have lost all of my clan.

A rustling in the bushes distracted me. I whirled around, kunai drawn and ready to stab it at Kabuto, but it was stopped short by pale slender fingers. I looked up into crimson eyes.

"Itachi?"

He looked down at me, finally pushing the kunai away. "It's not safe to run off by yourself."

"Where's Naruto?"

Itachi's eyes narrowed. "He's not going anywhere."

My eyes widened. "What did you do with hi—" I was cut short by Itachi gripping my chin firmly. Something strange was flickering in the depths of his eyes as he slowly walked forward, backing me into a tree.

He stared at me, and my skin grew both hot and cold at his touch. My heart was pounding in my ears as he leaned closer, a possessive look in his eyes. "You are mine and mine alone, Sasuke."

"I-Itachi?"

He knelt down and I was pulled harshly towards him as his lips devoured my own hungrily. I moaned under his assault, still confused at this sudden turn of affection…no, possession, that had overcome my brother.

Still, I wasn't one to complain, and eagerly wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him even closer to me. He didn't bother to break the kiss as I felt my clothing being undone. I myself slid my hands under his robes, shivering at the feel of the cool skin beneath. Itachi gave a low growl as he forced his tongue even farther into my mouth, occasionally nipping at my bottom lip. He finally broke away to whip my shirt off, and I gasped as the cold air contacted with my skin.

I brought my lips back down on his, releasing the tie that held his Akatsuki robes to him. There was no need for such a thing to taint the perfection of my brother's body. This is what I had been longing for again for weeks since Itachi started ignoring me. Now I had his full and undivided attention, and I was no longer in denial. This is what I wanted, and I was not going to give it up.

My hands fumbled clumsily with the clasp on his pants as I mirrored Itachi's ravishing kiss. Once again we had to break away so I could remove his shirt. The moonlight ghosted across his bare chest, giving it a pale and eerie radiance in the low light. I eagerly brought my lips down upon the smooth surface, kissing and nipping down his neck and collarbone while his fingers gripped tightly into my hair.

I had forgotten all about the cool night, and my goose bumps began to recede as Itachi's warm arms folded tightly around me. His lips were everywhere at once as he pushed me down, the soft fabric of his fallen Akatsuki robes brushing at my back and causing me to shiver. He loomed over me, his velvety hair meshing in with the darkness so that only by touch could I detect the boundary between the two.

His hand came out and brushed past my cheek lightly, before tracing up and tangling into my hair. No words had to be spoken. Each dominant kiss coursed through my body in powerful shock waves, and his other hand slid down the small of my back, pulling me up against him. I was his. Only his. And I accepted that; I wanted that. My heart, soul, and body belonged to him. He had spared my life; therefore, I was completely his.

I gave a small whimper of need as his hands slid down my hips, pulling at my undergarments and slowly sliding them down my legs, finally tossing them in the pile of other discarded clothing. I lay there, exposed, looking up at Itachi with longing in my eyes. His fingers traced over every inch of my body, rememorizing my every curve and dip.

A small doubt tugged annoyingly in the back of my mind. Was this going to be like before? Was I going to feel so close to my brother that I felt the connection bury deep within my soul, only to have it harshly severed by a later cold and distant Itachi who disregarded my existence for weeks on end? I didn't want to lose this; I didn't want to lose this feeling of connection. With that panicked thought, I suddenly leapt up at Itachi, wrapping my arms and legs around him as I kissed him passionately, fighting the prickling sensation in the corners of my eyes.

I think I may have surprised him, because he paused before slowly wrapping his arms tightly around me, hands wandering up and down my bare back. I whined into the kiss, squirming in his arms to cause some pleasant friction.

"Don't leave me," I said in a choked whisper as I buried my face into his neck, taking a deep breath of my brother's intoxicating scent.

Itachi didn't reply and gently lay me on the ground again, cupping my face in both hands and leaning down for a surprisingly gentle kiss. Like before, he moved away, and I felt panic grip onto me as the warmth of his body left mine. I knew he wasn't, but I was scared of him leaving me, bare and vulnerable, desperately needing his contact. Mere seconds that felt like eternities and he was back over me, kissing with just as much force as before, causing the feeling in my chest to tighten as my nails dug into his back.

A cold sensation swept past my lower regions, causing me to squirm in slight discomfort. I looked up at Itachi, showing that I trusted him, and to continue. It was painful at first last time too, but I needed this. I needed to feel close to him once more. I took the pain of him stretching me without a flinch, my eyes locked onto the crimson ones above me.

"Onii-san…please…" I pleaded, nipping at the sensitive flesh in between his shoulder and neck.

The sensational feeling of his hand lightly stroking my member helped distract me from the pain of the stretching. I moaned softly and tilted my head back, my hips gently rocking against his fingers and hand. The fingers suddenly moving out left me barren and empty, and I pressed closer to him, encouraging Itachi to take away that feeling.

"Sasuke," he said huskily, pressing his forehead against mine. I got lost in the depths of his eyes as his bangs tickled the side of my face. We were one and the same, and as I felt him plunge into me, I cried out, in bliss to finally become a part of him again.

My breath quickened and became more ragged as he began to move. The feeling of having him so close to me overrode any pain, and the flashes of pleasure later obliterated it even farther.

"Call out your sharingan," Itachi commanded, his breath stolen by pants and groans.

I did as he ordered, and he brought one hand out to stroke at my lashes with his thumb as his pace quickened. I couldn't turn away. His eyes were locked on mine with such intensity, I felt like I was becoming overwhelmed. There was something different from the last time. When Itachi had taken me before, it had all seemed to be out of pure raw need, more like a game.

Now he was everything; his scent inflamed my senses, his touch sent shuddering shocks throughout my sensitized body, and when I looked up at his eyes, I found I could partially see behind the cold reflective barrier that always kept me at bay from his emotions. I was shocked at the amount of affection I saw there, mixed with desire and emotions I couldn't even comprehend.

"Ita—Itai—" I had trouble voicing his name as pleasure flowed through every nerve in my body. I could feel it swelling around me, increasing and building up, driving us both towards the edge as our movements became more frantic.

With a strangled cry, my fingers clenched into my brother's hair and I buried my face into his neck, feeling my hips jerk instinctively into a rush of warmth. Itachi gasped into my ear and the feeling of a wetness rushing into me came soon after.

We stayed frozen like that, allowing our breaths to even out and our heartbeats to slow. Gently, Itachi eased out of me and lay me down. Suddenly, the cool night air felt nice against my hot and sweaty skin. I looked up with hazy eyes at my brother, and saw him begin to turn away. Panicked, I gripped onto him, turning his chin back to face me. He looked at me inquiringly.

"Don't," I whispered, my voice slightly hoarse. "Don't turn away and pretend nothing happened. Not again."

Itachi regarded me calmly. His pale cheeks still retained a light rose colour from our exertions.

I didn't like how he didn't answer me, so I resorted to my best glare. "You're not turning away from me again."

Itachi shut his eyes. "Don't be a fool, Sasuke."

And that was that. The open and caring Itachi that I had made love to moments before was shut up tight and hidden behind his protective cold hard exterior. He slid his clothing back on without another word, except to order me to get off his robes and to get dressed.

It hurt, being back at square one. But perhaps I wasn't pushed that far back. That had been the closest I had ever been to shattering the emotionless barrier he had encased himself after so many years. I got a peek of a part of Itachi I knew few had ever seen, if any. I would break through to him yet. These things just took time.

Not feeling as hopeless as I had before, I followed my brother's instructions obediently. Before heading back, he examined me closely, fixing my ruffled hair and making sure my clothing was straightened and covering the territorial marks he had left over me. I smirked inwardly at his paranoia. He hadn't cared about any of this before. When he was satisfied everything was in order, he nodded his head back to camp.

I followed him to find Naruto still there, looking as sullen as ever, and the blue-skinned Kisame serving as the reason he was still there. I was relieved that Itachi hadn't hurt the blonde, or rendered him paralyzed to keep him in one spot, as I had feared.

The shark-man looked up as we approached. "What took you so long?" He grinned with his dagger-like teeth and looked at Itachi suggestively.

"Shut up," my brother said in his monotone, seating himself on the ground. He turned his head to me. "You better get some sleep, Sasuke. It is late. Kisame and I will keep watch."

I nodded, sitting beside Naruto. I spared him a glance, and was slightly staggered by the look of angered loathing etched across the fox-child's face. My happy euphoria vaporized and I scowled back.

"What are you looking at, dobe?"

Naruto growled and turned his head away, shutting his eyes.

Shrugging, I curled on the ground, resting my head partially on Itachi's thigh. I felt his leg muscles tense, but they relaxed, and the warm pressure of a hand pressed lightly against my hair. I took a deep breath of his scent and drifted off into a comfortable sleep.

* * *

Sasuke can be such an ass to Naruto. Poor Naru's probably not sleeping all that well, and he's blatantly ignoring that. Ah well, hopefully he'll get nicer later on.

Reviews reviews…. 'heart'

**KagomeHigarashi** – I almost wish I wrote that part in the middle of the night when Sasuke's cheeks were flushed and he was calling out Itachi's name in his sleep. Poor oblivious Naruto…probably for the best though.

**Catherine Lewie Rain** – Yep, they're in kind of a pickle. Sasuke wants to smite the Akatsuki, but keep his brother happy at the same time. And Naruto's stuck in the middle, feeling very angry and betrayed. And Sasuke confined to a small space with Naruto will always be amusing. I almost hoped they would go through with a fight in the tree just to see what would happen.

**tidAL rabbiT** – Mmm…wish I had that dream. Lucky Sasuke.

**riikaa** – Hm…a year was lost somewhere. Lol, I'm kinda surprised there's so much confusion. I would've thought the creator would have made it clearer. I'll have to try and research this more thoroughly, because now I'm intrigued.

**blackbloodedkunoichi** – 'grins' I love reviews, so I wont complain to get more. ;) Thanks for the encouragement.

**Patty** – Yeah, this is going to be hard for Naruto to swallow. Poor guy. And it appears he likes Sasuke too…mind you he's rather pissed off right now being sold out like that.

**UchihaMangekyou** - Wow, I didn't know there was so much confusion over Sasuke's age during the massacre. Well, we all seem agreed that Itachi was 13. Sasuke was a kid, ranging from 7-9. Hm… Heh, if Naruto tried to rape Sasuke, with or without the Kyuubi, Itachi would beat him to the ground.

**Odyssion** – Heehee, your review made me very happy. 'loves long reviews' Thank you very much for the high praise. As for the number of chapters……um, well originally I thought this would be 10, tops. Heh, not going to happen, since I'm already on chapter 9. As I said before, I didn't plan on incorporating Naruto back into the story, so that may lengthen things a little. Ironically enough, I have the last part of the last chapter written, I just need to get to that point. Along the way, I need to deal with Orochimaru, Naruto, and Sasuke's gotta grow up/get stronger. And I need a few more lemons…hehehe. So in short, there's still a whiles to go, but as for specifically how many more chapters, I don't know. Speaking of lemons, that wasn't my first lemon, but it was probably my most graphic (I'm a shy girl). I like how you described Itachi's actions as predictable, yet illogical. That describes him so well. Poor Naruto's going to have a sexual breakdown sitting in between Itachi and Sasuke. Too much sexy. :D

**rAiNwAtEr** – It's those 'jerk' moments that make Sasuke Sasuke. While most tend to hate him for it, I love the little Uchiha.

**mayfaire** – Lol, I can see Sasuke practically squirming all over Naruto and moaning his brother's name while the blonde rubs his back in concern. Probably calmed Sasuke down because he thought his nee-san was touching him more. :P And Sasuke's perfectly safe, going out for firewood. There's no way Itachi would let him go off on his own if he sensed the presence of Kabuto or any of Orochimaru's men around.

**itachisgirl101** – No problem.


	11. Rescue

I'm sorry guys for the delay! I survived my first round of midterms, and have two more before Remembrance Day (the second round…already?) I guess that's what I get for overloading myself with seven courses instead of the standard five. Least next semester I only have three classes to worry about.

So the lack of update is partially due to studying my butt off, distractions and writer's block. Distractions being a great anime Halloween costume party that really brought my spirits up after the barrage of tests. Went as Kabuto with my friend as Sasuke on a leash. :P If I could pull off Itachi I would. There was an Itachi at the party (heh, and another Sasuke) but I guess randomly grabbing and humping people is rather inappropriate, even if they look bish…

As for the writer's block, the chapter was written a few weeks ago in patches, and when I got to a certain point I blanked out and had no clue what to do. Well, that's fixed, and I hoped I pulled it off… Anyway, enough of my blabbering, I know you all just want to read the fic. Enjoy. :D

BTW, I suck at fight scenes. I'd rather it be a lemon, lol.

* * *

Chapter Ten: Rescue

It took me a total of two hours to finally come to the conclusion that I did not like Kisame. He was rash, he was blunt, and most of all, he was detracting from my ability to revel in the new closeness I felt I had gained with my brother. Not to mention, like Kabuto, he loved to talk about me when I was clearly there and listening. If it wasn't for that huge wrapped club he had slung over his shoulder, I would've given him a piece of my mind long ago.

Itachi wasn't much better at conversation with him than he was with anyone else. He rarely made any noise to confirm that he was actually listening, and if he did respond to anything, it was usually in a single monosyllabic word. Kisame seemed to be used to this, and carried on talking regardless of my brother's passiveness.

Naruto walked in between the two, while I was on the other side of Itachi. The dobe wouldn't talk to me, hell, he wouldn't even look at me anymore. All the blonde did was walk mechanically, head staring at his feet as he went. As far as I could tell, he was probably formulating a way to get out. Best of luck to him, since he was walking in between two very powerful Akatsuki members.

His sudden change of mood irritated me to no end, in the way only Naruto could. I liked to be the one ignoring him, not the other way around. It just…bothered me. So I liked the power I felt it gave me, big deal. But I was beginning to realize how unpleasant it was on the receiving end.

Since my mind was presently on Naruto and my brother was being a nice wall for Kisame to talk to, I began to think about what would happen to the blonde. I already knew this abduction was for the demon within him, and something to do with the power the limitless chakara would grant. That had to be the reason, or Itachi wouldn't bother going through all the effort. I wondered if he knew what he was doing.

I personally had no clue how he or the Akatsuki were going to harness it, and after seeing the crap Naruto had to go through with the beast inside of him made me worry about Itachi. Not that my brother had to worry about being shunned by the village he was exiled from, but having a vengeful, powerful demon within would have to be a struggle every day of the carrier's life. Perhaps Itachi was like how I was before with Orochimaru, blinded by the prospect of power so as not to notice the dire consequences. Or maybe I was just being his dense naive baby brother who didn't fully understand the workings of the world. Either way, something did not feel right about the situation, but I was at a loss for what I wanted to do about it.

My face collided with my brother's back as he stopped suddenly, and I instantly took full opportunity to secretly take a long whiff of his scent. Kisame took a couple more steps to register the halt, having no one to crash into. He grabbed Naruto's arm, stopping him as well, his clear eyes locked on Itachi. He apparently trusted Itachi's senses, and I didn't blame him. If something were out there, Itachi would be the first to know. My brother spoke very softly and calmly while his eyes continuously scanned the surrounding foliage.

"Get Naruto out of he—"

He didn't even get to finish the sentence when half a dozen jounin leapt out of the trees. I instinctively sprang away to give my brother space and to get out of the way of the ambush. Moved back a little, I was better able to see just what the situation was. I instantly recognized all of them from the leaf village, and my eyes widened when I noticed a familiar tuft of silver hair. It would seem only natural that the hidden leaf village would send Kakashi to lead the rescue party for Naruto. Of course that was what this ambush was all about; Konoha must have gotten worried when their demon vessel didn't return.

Kisame and Itachi stood in between Naruto and the rescue jounin, while I was behind them all, blocking the blonde's escape route from behind. Thrilled as I was to see the rescue team, I wasn't going to risk angering Itachi by putting an obvious effort of siding with the leaf nin. I could play around for a bit, take out some bitterness on Konoha and then let the jounin slip off with Naruto afterwards. Itachi wouldn't be able to say I didn't try. Bringing my arm back, I felt the familiar tingling of the energy I had learned to harness and release by the very teacher who now served as my, our, opponent. My Chidori flew and slammed into the back of Kisame, who had darted in that direction to attack. Whoops, clumsy me. Stupid of shark-man to get in the way…

Kisame snarled as he continued to attack the rescue party. "Teach your fucking brother to aim properly, Itachi!"

Itachi turned to look at me and I grinned sheepishly at him. His eyes narrowing told me clearly that he wasn't fooled a bit by my façade. I swallowed and looked away from his penetrating gaze. I was going to get hell for this later on.

Naruto was participating in the battle for his freedom, using the chakara he had been storing up most likely in preparation for something like this. The dobe sure had faith in the village that shunned him. Then again, it would be the lesser of the two evils to bring the fox-child home than allow him to be used in the wrong hands. Konoha always had their self-preservation in mind.

It hurt a little to see Kakashi. He and I had spent a lengthy time together, training me up for the exams and to battle the curse seal I had received from Orochimaru. My former sensei didn't even glance at me as he focused on fighting Itachi. I knew he knew I was there. I suppose he had a right to be upset. I did break his trust, after all.

As powerful as I remembered Kakashi being, I knew he couldn't take my brother. One sharingan eye versus the mastery of both of my brother's; the odds were against him. Kisame was doing a good job dealing with the other jounin, so there would be no backup for Kakashi. I was glad when I saw his spiky club unraveled and in action that I had bit back any nasty remarks I had been tempted to give him before.

I focused my attacks on Naruto to keep him off my brother and Kisame's backs, though they were half-hearted at best. I did want him to get away; this rescue was perfect if it only went well for the Konoha side. Despite my fake enthusiasm in the fight, Naruto did nothing to hold back. I tensed as I sensed more red chakara building up as he powered up for the next attack. Great. This was going to end up just like our fight from before. You dobe, couldn't you just play along with me and we could both get out of this unscathed? It was no good if the blonde forced me to beat his ass into the ground, because I sure as hell wasn't going to get bested by him for the good of any cause.

His normally clear blue eyes were red and slitted, and I felt an unpleasant shiver run down my spine. Goddamn fox. Naruto would be nothing without you. I dodged his onslaught of punches and kicks, though just barely able to foresee them using my sharingan. I wished I had the Mangekyou sharingan now. It would be so much easier to just make Naruto pass out and that'd be the end of it.

I was surprised to find myself actually doing better than I had the first time. Maybe Itachi had taught me something after all, though I don't recall learning during those pointless sessions of getting my ass kicked. Before it had been much more difficult to keep up with Naruto's movements and get some hits in of my own. The only problem was that here was a rather enclosed space with trees all around, and there were already two other major fights happening in the already small clearing.

I powered up my Chidori again, reminding myself to keep track of how many I allowed myself to do. That thought soon slipped my mind when my back slammed painfully into the trunk of a tree from a well-aimed kick at my chest. I snarled and kicked off from the tree, satisfied to see the blue Chidori had at least wounded Naruto's shoulder. That would slow him down a bit, of course until the goddamn fox demon healed him. Well, I wouldn't give him time to do that. I brought my arm back, the blue energy crackling once again when I felt my neck start to prickle. Oh shit.

The Chidori died in my hand, my hand trembling from over exertion. I really shouldn't have tried to pull three Chidoris in a row. I had gotten better with them, and was able to perform three a day with no problems, but I should've spaced my last two farther apart. The unpleasant and familiar burning of the seal on my neck caused me to fall to my knees, gritting my teeth and digging my nails into the scarred flesh.

Naruto wasn't attacking me anymore. Instead he was in front of me, supporting my shoulders with his hands as he kneeled down. My defenses were down, and I had been reckless with my use of energy. I should've known the cursed mark would react the moment I allowed myself back into such a vulnerable position. I didn't like the lack of control I had when it took over. It gave me power, but like I had said before, power was nothing without control. Until I could wield it, I wanted to keep the monster at bay. I had forgotten all about Orochimaru's mark, because I hadn't felt it burn for a long time.

My senses were starting to slip away, and Naruto's grip on my arms tightened dramatically. I could hear his voice, but it sounded so very distant.

"Sasuke! Sasuke, look at me! Focus! Come on, you're not that weak. Look at me!"

I tried to focus my eyes on the deep blue of Naruto's, and slowly I felt the burning sensation start to recede. The blonde let out a sigh of relief.

"Shit, Sasuke, don't do that again."

Funny how we switched from enemies to teammates and then back again in a split-second's notice. That was just the type of relationship we had. I muttered a gruff thanks, probably not articulate enough for him to understand, but I was not going to put in the extra effort to say it clearly. I stood up and Naruto tensed, unsure of what my next actions would be. I wasn't all that sure myself.

Suddenly, Naruto made a weird face at me. I cocked an eyebrow at his somewhat comical expression before my face turned to one of concern as his knees buckled. I just managed to catch him before he hit the earth, and it was then I noticed the thin delicate needles protruding out of Naruto's back. At the same moment, the hair on the back of my neck prickled as an all-too-familiar voice whispered behind me.

"You have been quite the pain to retrieve, Sasuke-kun."

I whirled around in a well-trained kick, which Kabuto artfully dodged. He smirked at my failed attempt.

"Brother dearest can't help you now." He motioned his head towards Itachi, who was currently distracted by Kakashi's onslaught.

I narrowed my eyes and tensed. "I don't need his help to dispose of you." My mind whirred, trying to recall my miserable defeat with the medical nin before and pick out some sort of strategy to at least evade him. I wasn't cocky enough to think that I could take him at my level. I had improved since I fought with him last, and could benefit from Kabuto underestimating me, but the sound-nin was far from stupid. I had no doubt that he could adapt to whatever I threw at him. I just needed to bide my time until Itachi could come to my rescue and—

I paused. Here I was, mentally playing into Kabuto's words. For a moment, I was disgusted by the level of dependency that I had slipped into. I was beginning to understand the method in my brother's madness when it came to being so cold and distant. I couldn't always depend on him to save me; I had to rely on myself like I had before meeting up with Itachi again.

My mind went to work a split-second later to develop a new strategy in order to deal with this threat. How like Kabuto to sit and wait until my brother was thoroughly distracted before making his move. I was even coming to suspect that he may have led the rescue party indirectly. Well, my Chidori was out, and I wasn't stupid enough to try it again. I was still drained from the attack of the cursed seal, and the fight with Naruto did nothing to conserve my chakara. How opportunistic your henchmen are, Orochimaru.

Kabuto seemed in no great rush. He seemed confident that he at last had me cornered, as he circled around me, waiting for my first move. The silver needles in his hand glimmered in the sunlight. My options were pretty slim. Fight Kabuto, and get my already tired ass kicked and abducted to Orochimaru, or surrender myself gracefully and figure out a plan later. I could always run like hell like I had the first time, but I had a feeling the sound-nin would be prepared for that. I couldn't help but have my eyes stray to Itachi. He wasn't even looking my way, and seemed to be focusing his concentration on some sort of Genjutsu. Here goes nothing.

My legs muscles screamed in protest as I darted forward to meet Kabuto. I still didn't know how to beat him, but standing around wasn't going to accomplish anything. I was surprised at how easy the fight was going. Kabuto only last minute blocked my onslaught of attacks, getting in none of his own. It took me a while to clue in to the fact that he was toying with me, testing my limits to assess my abilities. I growled, unwilling to be cooperative in his research project for Orochimaru. Pulling back, I kept myself at a distance, forcing Kabuto to initiate the first set of moves.

There wasn't too much space to maneuver, and I stepped away after getting my hair unpleasantly damp from moving to close to whatever the hell Kisame was doing. Kabuto appeared to grow increasingly annoyed at my game of cat-and-mouse as I kept just out of his reach. My lungs burned and my limbs felt heavy from the exertion I was putting them through. It didn't help too much either that my ass was still slightly sore from the previous night, but like hell would I regret it.

Finally, my fatigue overpowered me and I found myself pinned to the back of a tree. I brought my knee up to jam it into Kabuto's gut, though I doubted it would have enough force to do any good. Before I could even try, Kabuto had suddenly released me and was facing away, working at defending himself from a rather pissed looking Naruto. The needles that had penetrated his back lay broken on the ground now as he sparred with the sound nin. So the annoying healing powers of the Kyuubi were useful after all.

Forcing my body to exert just a little more effort, I joined Naruto in ganging up on Kabuto. This was probably the only opportunity I would get, and it would be stupid to let it slip by. Not an even fight in numbers, but I had learned long ago that there was no such thing as a fair fight. It was all about survival, and at any means necessary. To believe otherwise was to be taken advantage of and vulnerable.

Kabuto was strong, but I could sense his hesitation in the fight. He had never really fought against Naruto when the fox-child was backed up by the Kyuubi. I remember being uncertain of what to expect as well, a feeling that still existed in me when faced with Naruto after our first big fight. This was the upper hand we needed, before Kabuto could adapt to the situation.

I could sense Naruto's chakara building up dramatically, and hoped Naruto wasn't going to overdo it. We didn't both need to be weak from exhaustion. I then realized what he was getting at, when I saw Kabuto backing away warily. The chakara kept building and I could swear I could see the faint form of a fox burning around Naruto, grinning wickedly with the surge of power. Kabuto would think twice about facing this without a solid plan.

He suddenly whirled on me, grabbing me around the chest and leapt up towards the trees. I snarled and kicked out, satisfied to contact some fleshy surface. That was when things got confusing. At the same moment Naruto pounced up at us, a shock of silver hair came rushing past, an arm pulling Naruto back. I then felt warm fabric fold around me and there was a pained cry from Kabuto. All I could see was blackness, drenched in the smell of my brother.

I peered out of the fabric to see Kakashi and Itachi in a sort of stand-off. Kakashi had Naruto by the shoulders while Itachi had me wrapped protectively under his Akatsuki cape. I could feel how tense my brother's muscles were as he prepared for Kakashi taking off with the blonde. Both seemed to be doing so rapid thinking. It must have only lasted for a second or two, but to me it felt like an eternity. I put pressure on my brother's chest, silently pleading with him to just let them go. The fabric was still mostly over my head so I couldn't see his face, but his muscles did not relax.

Kakashi made a sudden movement, and Itachi began to leap forward. I grabbed onto him, holding him by the waist, the cloak fluttering off me from the movement.

"Itachi nii-san!"

It was enough to cause him to pause, and for Kakashi to disappear with Naruto in a puff of smoke. My brother just stood there, staring at the spot where they had been. My hold around his waist didn't release, though now I was behind him due to his sudden movement forward.

We stood there like that for a second eternity, my grip around his waist iron-tight, afraid of what would happen if I let go. I looked up at the back of my brother's head, a slight breeze tossing his bangs into view. He didn't move for a while, and I noticed how dead silent everything had gotten. Suddenly he turned and I flinched, expecting his hand to cast a furious blow on my cheek. Instead, two fingers came and pressed roughly against my forehead, pushing me back and forcefully releasing my arms from his waist. I stumbled back, managing to keep my footing, and looked up at my brother's face. The instant I did, I wish I hadn't.

My brother rarely looked angry. He was the type of person to leave others to guess the emotion he had from the blank pallet of his expressionless face. The face hadn't changed, but the fury that burned, barely restrained, in his eyes made my stomach feel like lead. I could not recall ever seeing him this angry. I was surprised I was still alive to be subject to the wrath of his glare.

He shut his eyes, hiding the crimson and turned his back on me. My heart soon plummeted along with my stomach to a vicinity somewhere around my ankles.

"Itachi."

No response. He just kept walking in the direction where Kisame was amusing himself kicking around a couple of unconscious nin that unfortunately had not made their escape before passing out.

"Onii-san."

Nothing.

Kisame looked up at Itachi, then looked back at me with a 'aren't you in a deep pile of shit?' before following Itachi through the damaged trees. I hesitated before taking cautious steps after them. I didn't see Kabuto, and to be honest, he was the farthest thing from my mind. The only thing I was able to focus on was the cold shoulder of my brother's back, walking away from me.

* * *

Way to go, Sasuke. You finally get up there in standing with Itachi before screwing it all up. No lemon for you tonight. 

No leaf nin were killed in the making of this chapter. Kisame just kicked them around a bit. The other leaf's will come back for them; fear not. I'm just sick of writing fight scenes. :P

If there are any glaring mistakes, I'm sorry and let me know. I did reread this, but my brain is lacking sleep so I'm not sure how awake I was for the proofread.

In response to all my reviews...

'falls to floor, frothing at the mouth and twitching in pure ecstasy' Twenty-one reviews for one chapter! That's like double anything I've ever gotten! And I got most of them early on so it isn't just all due to delay. I thought I was going to go into cardiac arrest. It's good to know I've entertained you all with this fic. Just wow...thank you. You made my midterms look less grim. I never thought my fic would hold a hat to some other Uchihacest fics that were out there. I hope to continue to amuse you with the story, and though I don't think we're near the end, I estimate it's half to just over half through. Now to respond to all of you. 'heart'

**Patty** - Hm, I'm not sure if I'll have Sasuke learn something directly from Itachi. Itachi's 'teaching' style is more indirect. I don't know if Itachi will get an opening to explain this later, so in case he doesn't, I'll explain it now. He doesn't want Sasuke to really learn 'moves' from him, sort of like a well-trained parrot (in the fighting sense--lol). He knows Sasuke has the potential to develop his own style, and wants him to deviate from the norm like Itachi did. It's too easy to just be shown how to do something, and it's more meaningful developing a new and potentially more fitting way. He's giving Sasuke a chance to explore his options when fighting, and opportunities in which he can develop new strategies and skills. If Sasuke's totally going off on the wrong ballpark, I'm sure Itachi will guide him. It's also a lame excuse for me not being sure what Itachi should teach him. 'sweatdrop' But other than it being an excuse, I really think it's a plausible reason. And I think Naruto suspects, even if he hasn't fully clued into the fact that he does.

**KagomeHigarashi** - God, I wish this was a movie.

**tidAL rabbiT** - You know, I always do that. It's a horrible habit of mine that English class has never been able to fully correct. I'll try to be more careful and prevent future slip-ups. Uchiha-smex is always the highlight of my day, as well as reviews for Uchiha-smex. :)

**Catherine Lewie Rain** - Yeah, I guess Naruto has a right to be pissed off. I'm not decided whether he knows about Itachi and Sasuke's more-than-brothers relationship, but he definitely feels betrayed by Sasuke.

**rAiNwAtEr** - Heh, I like that kiss. It was so unexpected for me, even if I knew it was coming at some point. (wow I make no sense) Poor Naru-chan. He cannot have Sasuke in this fic because he belongs to another and Itachi would skewer Naruto alive. Itachi is possessive even if he doesn't seem to care. Bit by bit, Itachi's being revealed to Sasuke.

**Odyssion** - Lol, I'm with you with admitting feelings to Kisame. No wonder Itachi's so distant and untalkative. I've had a few fics fall out half way through, but I am determined to bring this one to its conclusion. It started out as a 'I want to write a short Uchihacest fic' but then grew, and now I'm attached to it. And long reviews do drive me to write faster, but midterms don't. :(

**riika** - Yep, I overdid it. Toned it down a little, hope it's not so jarring now. 'envisions Sasuke in a dress and smirks'

**Padfootlet** - Uchihacest does rock:D

**blackbloodedkunoichi** - OMG, I looked up the lyrics and nearly died of excitement when I read them. Wow...they're perfect. I've never even heard of the song before and it seems to go hand in hand with this fic. Listened to the song, and now I can't without envisioning Sasuke yelling out to Itachi. Might name a chapter after the song if it fits later on. Thank you so much for informing me. I love you.

**mayfaire** - Heh, that kiss between Naru and Sasu was perfect to get Itachi all worked up and jealous. And yeah, Itachi's a bastard. It's in the Uchiha blood. He is a little cautious around showing too much emotion to Sasuke. Guess he doesn't want Sasuke to become too dependent, though I think our youngest Uchiha already is around his older brother. Heh, that would've been funny/sad if Naruto walked in on them, but he'd have to do that with Kisame's teeth in his ankle. Itachi left Naruto with the shark for a reason. 'gives you a tissue for your nose' I don't know whether to feel sorry or flattered that your nose is bleeding. Was the lemon really that good? lol Oh, and UPDATE ENGAGEMENT TROUBLE! I've been dying to read that FOREVER!

**Gothic-Rez** - 'dies from flattery' Thank you.

**itachisgirl101** - Yay! Glad you liked it!

**UchihaMangekyou** - Heehee, thanks. :)

**Jill** - Hehehe, Itachi needed a good dose of jealousy to get him going. He can be so stubborn.

**xaphiras** - Wow. Just wow. That is one of the longest reviews I've ever gotten. And I received it on a day that was quite crappy, so it really brightened it up. Thanks. :D You have no idea how I go nuts trying to find a word I want to use, but can't remember what it is. I was a little nervous that I was straying away from the character's personalities (Sasuke was getting a little too whiney for my liking) but I guess there will be some deviation from the norm in a fic. I'll try to do my best to keep them slightly in line still. The Sasu-Naru clones part is my pride and joy. I wasn't sure at first how they would escape, but that lightbulb went on in my head about 1/2 way through. Once again, adding Naruto was an afterthought, and wasn't supposed to really be part of the plotline, but I'm glad I did it. It certainly will make things more interesting, especially for me to fit it all into the originally intended plot with Orochimaru. I probably wont be putting this story in anyone's POV besides Sasuke's, simply because that's the pattern I've been following. I started this story wondering if I could do a 1st person POV consistently, because I really am a POV-whore---I love to explore different character's minds when it concerns the same situation. Sticking with Sasuke would be something new for me to try out, though I'll admit, I almost broke a few chapters ago and nearly gave in to writing a Naruto-POV chapter, but decided against it last minute. Though I think it would be the most interesting, I would not do an Itachi POV, since I think it's important that it's unclear what he's thinking at any given time. It was sweet when Itachi didn't shove Sasuke off him at the end of the chapter, though I'm sure he would've a few chapters ago. They're moving ahead. :) I'm glad you liked the lemons. I'm always so nervous/embarrassed writing them, and usually need to sit down and do it in one go or I chicken out. I toned down the onii-chan thing, because, yeah, it was overdoing it. Thanks so much for your feedback. :)

**no.true.reality** - Gotta love smuttiness. ;)

**Start Me Up** - What's vegemite? Ah, who cares, I'll take it:D

**uchiha'sgirl** - As always happens with me, I had a good portion of the chapter written in fragments weeks ago, but it's finalizing it and putting everything together that takes up so much 'coughprocrastinationcough' time. The wait for this chapter was longer than I would've wanted, but it couldn't be helped with my midterms mercilessly slaughtering me and leaving me for dead.

**Chou ni Natte** - I feel the worst for Naruto because I know this is a ItaSasu fic, and poor Naru's going to end up being left alone (unless I find him someone along the way, but I dunno about that). This was probably my favourite chapter as well, though I'm rather fond of the second chapter too. Funny how the lemon's in that chapter as well, but it's not only because of the lemons that I like them, lol. Yay! Thanks for the add to your C2. I didn't know what those things were for the longest time, lol.

**Itachi-rin** - I love so many conflicting pairings in Naruto. I too adore SasuNaru, but I'm a big sucker for the Uchihacest as well. And a little GaaNaru on the side, and I haven't even gotten to Neji yet, and yeah... 'happy sigh' Itachi is quite the split personality. I'd like to think he's slowly opening up to his otouto. Aww...I'm loved. 'sniffles'

**NarutoBlackmail** – Aww, sorry I made you wait. I feel so bad for not updating, with or without blackmail. (heh, lame joke—you can tell I just finished midterms; brain doesn't process anymore and unfunny jokes become funny) Anyway, maybe the work-load will lay off a bit (pfft) and I can update as often as I do in the summer. Here's hoping. Your love is loved. :3


	12. What Could Have Been

I never thought it would feel so good to only have to worry about a couple of essays. I'm so glad that my major tests and projects are done, but now I just have to worry about finals (which are coming up faster than I would like!)

Had myself a nice break visiting a friend for the weekend and now I'm all refreshed with a new chapter. Wrote the beginning during a fire drill while sitting outside the university. It's a little shorter, but I'm not going to let it sit for half a month while I don't work on it.

I made a Sasuke doll! I'm so proud of it! I wish I had the skill/material/will to make an Itachi one too. That would be hot. If you want to see some pictures of it google 'gatotail' for my deviantART (1st link that appears), and go to my scraps gallery. I'd put up the url, but this fanfiction formatting hates that, so you'll have to work for it. ;)

Disclaimer: I do not own Sasuke, Itachi, Mangekyou, or Kisame. I do however own all run-on sentences, and other sleep-induced mistakes.

* * *

Chapter 11: What Could Have Been 

I made sure to give Itachi his space for the rest of the day. Even Kisame was staying well away from his menacing aura. Neither of us wanted to be the one to trigger him. Itachi looked fit to go into a murderous rage at the slightest disturbance. I suppose he had every right to be, with my indirect betrayal and all. I had mixed feelings on reflection of what I did. I was glad Naruto got away, but I was starting to have doubts if it was all worth it.

Setting up camp was a silent affair. I went wordlessly to get firewood, Kisame rounded up some food, and I knelt down and started the fire, afraid to ask my brother to do it. We ate again in dead silence, the tension making me shift and fidget in nervousness. Finally, after the meal, Itachi spoke for the first time, the words I had been dreading.

"Sasuke. Come with me. We need to talk."

I stiffened and Kisame froze, the ration bar still hanging from his mouth. Itachi stood up and walked away without waiting to see if I was coming.

The shark-man swallowed his mouthful and gave me a jagged grin, slapping my shoulder. "Good luck kid."

If I wasn't so scared, I would've made him pay for his crude contact. I was shaking as I followed by brother into the trees. I didn't think I was being cowardly; on the contrary, the fact that I could move and follow Itachi to my unknown doom spoke volumes of my bravery.

My brother stopped walking and so did I, keeping my distance warily. The words he told me before played through my head. "_If you rub me the wrong way I will kill you in an instant."_ Well, if there were an example of Itachi being mad, this was it. I intook my breath as he turned around, swiftly coming upon me and closing his hand around my throat, holding me up against a trunk. I shut my eyes, trying to calm my shaking.

Itachi's voice came cool and clear. "Open your eyes, Sasuke."

I remained unresponsive.

"Look at me."

I bit my lip, resisting as much as I could. I didn't want to go through this, not again.

"Sasuke."

The tone in which he spoke my name chilled me to the core. Gathering all my willpower, I forced my eyes open and looked at my brother. The instant our eyes met, I was drowning in a mass of crimson and felt myself falling into a dark oblivion.

When I opened my eyes, my stomach plummeted.

"No," I groaned, "Not again…"

I was home, in my village. There was an eerie calm in the air, the moonlight casting shadows over the buildings and deserted streets. I knew this feeling of unease all too well. It plagued my memories and fuelled my nightmares. This was the night the world had ended for me, the night I lost everything and in turn gained a new sense of purpose and distrust. The feeling of dread was overpowering. I didn't want to be here, I didn't want to see this, not again.

My feet moved against my will, deaf to my mind screaming at them to stop. I knew what I was going to see. Peering my head through the doorway I wasn't shocked, but the sight still jolted me and made my insides twist painfully. There were mom and dad lying in pools of scarlet. I walked mechanically to their still forms, stopping short of them and falling to my knees with a choked sob.

Even after all these years, it still hurt. I had been starting to buy into Itachi's reasoning, but that new perspective faltered as raw emotion took over. I went around the village, taking in more sights of brutality and gore until it all began to feel unreal. The pain was so intense that I just wanted to curl up and die with the rest of them.

I knew what would happen next. Everything was like a well-orchestrated movie, embedded in my memory eternally. Nothing I saw was new, but reliving it seemed to strike deeper and deeper each time. Any moment now, I would come before Itachi and face the sting of betrayal again.

My feet once again moved on their own, carrying me on through the twisted memory of my reality. I could see his silhouette, darkened by the moonlight behind him. But there was something wrong; something off I just couldn't place. He stood motionless and I approached. When I got closer, I realized that there was something at his feet. I squinted as I tried to make out what it was. The form became clearer and clearer and I froze, my eyes widening as my breath fell short and lodged in my throat. No….this was wrong….this wasn't how it was supposed to go…

Itachi lay dead on the ground, his crimson eyes glassy and sightless under the pale sheen of the moon. This shock outweighed all the others. Always in my mind my brother was untouchable, practically immortal. But here he was, an empty shell, proof that even my perfect brother Itachi was human. This shocking revelation was hit me just as hard as when I had first learned of his betrayal, if not more so.

Shakily, I brought my eyes up to see who the figure standing over my brother's corpse was. Pale, wan skin stretched tightly over high cheekbones, and burning yellow eyes were fixed on me. Ebony hair draped lifelessly around his face, reflecting no light from the ethereal moon. I stumbled back as this intrusion to my nightmare stepped over my brother's body and approached me.

"Sasuke."

Orochimaru's words were as cold as ice, and I felt a chill taking over the inside of my body and spreading out. I moved back for every step he took forward, yet still the snake-man kept advancing.

"The rest of the clan is unfit to be my vessel," he hissed, "Stubborn Uchihas." He reached his hand out, and I flinched away, trying to keep the distance between us, though I seemed to be getting nowhere. My brother was still in sight behind Orochimaru's back, his beautiful body stretched out in its final resting position.

Orochimaru finally caught my chin and a horrible feeling crept up my spine. He leaned in with a sadistic grin. "You're still young…you have the potential, and you'll be much more malleable than Itachi."

"No!" I struggled back, but couldn't get away from his ice-cold grip, as fragile as it seemed. "Get away from me!" My cursed seal had started to burn unbearably, and I felt it crawling up and taking over my senses.

It was like my limbs were made of lead and I was flailing through mud; as hard as I tried, I couldn't get away. He was getting closer and closer, and I could see my brother's sightless eyes still staring up at the darkened heavens. Orochimaru's tongue slid out, fangs gleaming as I screamed soundlessly for escape. My vision was going white, my body was falling, and my chest felt like it was being constricted, no air in my lungs to voice my screeching cries.

My eyes snapped open and I found myself in a cold sweat, shaking from over-exertion. Where was I? What had happened to Orochimaru? It took a while for me to get my bearings, confused more by the feeling of motion though I was sure I was lying perfectly still. It made sense when I looked up to see my brother, staring straight ahead as he walked, carrying me in his arms.

I nearly gasped in relief to see him alive, and would've thrown my arms around his neck to check to see if he was real, had I not felt so weak. Itachi made no acknowledgement that I was awake, and continued to carry me. I could see Kisame walking beside him. The blue-skinned nin glanced at me, then Itachi, and looked away. He seemed rather disturbed or afraid, judging by his lack of usual jarring conversation. Fragments of memory started to come back, and I began to understand why. Itachi had shown that he was ruthless, using Mangekyou against his own younger brother. Twice, if anything.

I felt a sense of relief wash over me rather than fury to know it was just an illusion fabricated in my mind. Anger would come later. Right now I was relieved to look upon my living brother, no longer a lifeless corpse lying at Orochimaru's feet.

The vision had shaken me. Before, the Mangekyou had taken me into my unaltered memory, but this… I couldn't get the image of my dead brother out of my head. The more I focused on it, the more I realized how much I would rather have just simple betrayal. At least then I would still have my brother. In the nightmare, I was left alone. I buried my face in my brother's chest, keeping my eyes open, afraid of plunging back into the horror of the vision. Why would Itachi want me to see such a thing? Was this supposed to be my punishment for disobedience?

Itachi still walked expressionlessly, despite my obvious shifting in his arms. I wouldn't bother him just yet. Chances were he was still mad, and I didn't want to risk sparking that again, especially since I wasn't quite over the last scare. I'd talk to him later, when the tensions calmed and I could once again think straight.

* * *

I was going to lengthen this with a Sasuke Itachi conversation, but if I let this sit, you wont get an update in an even longer while, and by then I'll be swamped with finals. I figured it was better to send this as one little package and continue the next portion in the next chapter. 

The "flashback" IS altered quite a bit and messed around, I know. It's supposed to be like that. Sorry if it seems rushed, I couldn't find a way to add to it without sounding redundant.

And I'm tired. Yeah. I'll use that as a viable excuse.

Reviews!

**KagomeHigarashi** – Lol, I'm glad I'm getting such positive feedback from Kisame. I thought his character would be a drag to write, but I actually have fun with it.

**tidAL rabbit** – Heh, my favorite line. Hell, half my motivation for that fight was to be able to write that. And nostalgia is the best.

**Patty** – I find that misspelling quite amusing considering I helped hang up a poster that had "Chakra" in big bold letters. Some things I just remain oblivious to I guess. I'll go back and fix it when I get the chance, and also other such errors in my earlier chapters. It's certainly not the last of Naruto in this fic. I do need to get some slightly technical training descriptions in soon which I'm kind of dreading because I suck with such things. Knowing me, I'll find some way to graze over it.

**oOKeairaOo **– I don't know when I first got into ItaSasu. It just clicked one day. I think after I saw Itachi use the Mangekyou on Sasuke in the manga. Still trying to battle making Sasuke too whiney, which I feel he's becoming. I'll do my best to stay _relatively_ in character, if not for a few needed tweaks.

**Itachi-rin** – Itachi will get over it. He feels he has punished Sasuke enough, though he wont let him off so easily again.

**kawaii kitsune-kun** – Lol, I don't think Itachi would let Sasuke go back to Naruto, no matter how pissed of he is at the younger Uchiha.

**blackbloodedkunoichi** – Yeah, those types of songs are always good when you're pissed off. But their also great for motivation. Thanks again.

**NejiGirl** – Thanks.

**Catherine Lewie Rain** – Itachi is as indirect as always with everything.

**yurusanai **– Well, I made up the story line, but I used a bunch of stuff from the manga/show and twisted it around for my own purposes. I wanted to make it as believable as possible while still changing things around.

**anne mari **– Words cannot express how much I enjoyed your wording.

**UchihaMangekyou** – Yep, I'll fix the chakra thing when I'm less lazy/busy. And I seem to be surviving classes so far. Go me.

**rAiNwAtEr – **I adore how Naruto and Sasuke's friendship/rivalry is portrayed. They're both too stubborn to admit to each other that they care. I'm quite happy with how the tension played out in the chapter.

**itachisgirl101 **– LMFAO. Ah, that would be quite a Halloween.

**xaphiras – **I'll probably post the sequel again when I get the inspiration to work on it. Right now all my creativity is flowing into this fic and my Juvenile Orion one (which I really should get to work on…eek), and the sequel was just sitting dead. I'm going to wait until I can focus more on it and figure out what I'm going to do. Ah, and you are so right with my fight scenes. I figured someone would eventually point out how I sort of skim over them. I just find it so hard to write details of fight scenes and jutsus without sounding weird. It's so easy to see in my head, but so hard to describe. So like the lazy writer I am, I badly give in to the temptation to just bypass it, when I should really be trying to improve. Lol, I was hoping I wasn't too redundant with Kabuto. It seems whenever there's an opening where Itachi's busy, 'poof' there's Kabuto. And he tends to get away empty handed. That trend may not hold up forever… I am so happy with how the face-off turned out. It was exactly how I wanted it. I feel so bad for those nameless leaf nin, but Kisame is sadistically amusing. Naruto will be back, and Itachi will forgive Sasuke eventually, though he's unlikely to forget. He'll definitely keep an eye on his brother, but the soft spot he still carries for him will be his weakness.

**mayfaire** – Hehehe, Sasuke is a naughty boy. Hell, I was surprised he could move at all after Itachi was done with him. Yep, my birthday was on the 5th of November. Finally 19, legal drinking age, which doesn't matter because I don't like alcohol anyway. Ah well, I'll always remain 9 psychologically. Thanks for updating! Made me happy.

**Rayne** – Thanks a lot! I hope to keep your interest in this fic. :)

**no name for now** – Heh, I certainly don't care if it's wrong. Uchihacest makes me happy. The SasuNaru is eating me up inside because this is an ItaSasu fic, but Naruto was so going after Sasuke. Orochimaru should make an appearance soon if all goes as planned, and I'll definitely try to fit in more lemons, definitely before the story is over.

**Call the Winds** – Thanks : D


	13. Training

I am so sorry to all of you. I had planned to update like…….three weeks ago. Exams really ate up my time (blarg, seven of them) and then a few days after I finished all I felt like doing was sitting around. But now I'm back, and I hope I don't slack too much with my fanfictions. 'bites lip and thinks about the juv orion one she hasn't updated in months' Yeah………Well, thank you all for your patience. Thanks also for your wonderful reviews. They made me so happy, lol, if not guilty for not updating.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Edit: I realized my break I had inserted between Sasuke's sleep and training didn't appear correctly, so I added it in.

* * *

Chapter 12: Training

"Nii-san." My voice was cracked and raw, even though I had only been screaming in the illusion.

Itachi didn't respond right away, finishing his drink from a water flask. He lowered it and capped the container, acknowledging only his own actions even though I stood before him. His words, however, revealed that he was aware of my presence.

"Leave, Kisame."

The blue-skinned nin jumped slightly, startled by Itachi's sudden command. They were the first words that had come from him since I had come to a couple of days ago.

"For how long?" Kisame inquired hesitantly.

"Just get out. When I need you, I am quite capable of finding you."

Kisame argued no more, and seemed grateful to pack up and leave until Itachi's foul mood blew over. Silence hung heavy when he left. Itachi seemed more concerned with his own business once again, now opening and eating one of the ration bars I had grown to dislike. Catching me by surprise, he glanced up at my figure standing before his sitting form.

"You look rather pale Sasuke. You really should eat properly."

That was true; I had hardly eaten since the nightmarish incident, my stomach feeling ill at the slightest disturbance by food. Still, I was rather surprised Itachi had noticed, and cynically found it humorous that he pinpointed that to be the cause of my sickly appearance. Of course, my brother was far more insightful than that as he continued.

"…or was my punishment too much for you?"

I could have screamed at that severe understatement, but instead I stood and watched as Itachi slowly crumpled the wrapper and tossed it in the fire.

"Do you have any idea why I made you see what you did?"

_Because you're a sadistic bastard and reruns would be too mundane?_ I bit my lip and continued to stand before him, though my knees shook slightly and threatened to give out from fatigue. It was obvious the full effects of the Mangekyou had not worn off, and still placed a heavy toll on my body. Like before, my body would eventually recover. I wasn't so optimistic about my mind.

Itachi tilted my chin up slightly with the tips of his fingers. "Sit, Sasuke, before you collapse into the fire."

I gave a weak smirk. Right now, everything sounded morbidly funny to me. I wondered what it would feel like to be consumed by the heat and warmth of the flames, whether it would be the same sort of feeling I experienced when I felt longing fro my brother. I hadn't felt that as strongly as usual, because the chilling image of his corpse still lingered in the back of my mind. It wasn't too hard to sit, and my body willingly slumped to the ground without further encouragement from Itachi.

My stomach churned as I looked up at him, tears threatening to form if I had any to shed. The whole experience had turned me into a wreck, and I still loved Itachi so goddamn much. It made no sense, but denial didn't make it go away.

"I hope my message has been clear to you."

Clear? I didn't know what to make of that. Yeah it was all sharp and crystal clear, yet still at the same time obscure and vague. I grasped the message hidden in the agony of my ordeal, but still carried not the faintest inkling as to why. Well, Itachi had been mad. He demonstrated throughout his life that he did not need a clear motive to take dramatic action.

Itachi regarded me. "You went through all the trouble to get my attention, yet you're not saying anything. Speak up Sasuke, I'm listening."

I opened my mouth to find words, but they didn't come as easily as they had in my head moments ago. I knew everything I wanted to tell him, but staring up at his crimson eyes, I felt my confidence falter.

Itachi sat patiently, watching and waiting for me to speak. We probably could've sat there all night; it would make no difference to him. I tried again to speak, and found once the words started, it was like a floodgate being opened.

"I know you're disappointed in me. I had no right to stand against you like I did. But I could not let you take Naruto away. He is my friend, and no matter how much I look up to you, I do not believe in the motives of the Akatsuki. I know you were, are, angry with me for what I did, but I carry no regrets. I'd do it again." I fixed Itachi with a strong glare, surprised at my own boldness.

Itachi watched me for a moment before cupping my chin and leaning in. His voice was ice, though his breath burned like fire against my face. "I hope the next time you have the nerve to stand against me, Sasuke, that you face me like a man, and not like a sniveling child." He released me abruptly and sat back, a deadly expression on his face. "And you better be prepared to fight to the death, because I will not allow you to stand in my way again."

Judging rightly so that I didn't want to tread farther on this unstable path, I steered the conversation in a different direction. "After……..after the Mangekyou…….took effect…." I swallowed, the memories bubbling up to the surface more clearly than ever, causing me to shiver and wrap my arms more tightly around me knees. "It was Orochimaru….not you…..you were gon—" My voice gave out, and I found I couldn't look at Itachi any more as I continued. "I don't fully understand…….is that what would have happened….if you didn't…….if you didn't….." I couldn't say it, but the words played over and over in my head. _If you didn't kill our family?_

Itachi tilted his head to the side. "It was a distinct possibility. You honestly believe Orochimaru would just let me roll over and live for being disobedient to his wishes? Luckily for you, Sasuke, I am not one to give in so easily, a weakness I see far too clearly in you."

I bit my lip. "Why was it so important that you had to fabricate it all to show me?"

"I was angry."

I rolled my eyes.

"But I also wanted you to understand. And you do, don't you?" Itachi stood and walked behind me, kneeling down and placing his hands upon my shoulders. His breath whispered in my ear, though he was now out of my vision. "You cannot always depend on me Sasuke. I killed the clan for my own selfish reasons, I admit. But really, I was the lesser of the two evils."

"I'm sure Konoha would've done something to protect us from Orochimaru." I nearly burst out laughing when I realized what I said. My faith in Konoha had died long ago; why should I believe now that they would've helped?

Itachi, too, found my statement rather foolish. "You honestly think that pitiful town would stand in the way of Orochimaru? My dear Sasuke, they were crushed once by the demon fox, and Orochimaru will finish off the remains when he recovers from his pitiful state. There was never hope for Konoha, and they have a hard enough time sustaining themselves without putting extra exertion into the clan. Just look at all the effort they put into my capture after that decisive night. Three weeks of search parties to hunt me down. That was the price of your family."

There were many things wrong with Itachi's statements, because after all, he had been the one to take my family away, but his assessment of Konoha's reaction to the tragedy was fairly accurate. I remember being an outcast after it happened, either avoided like I was some walking ghost, or gaining too much pity attention that I did not want. It wasn't too long before everyone had moved on. All that really remained a month after the massacre were whispered comments behind my back of what a shame it was to loose such an upstanding family. That bitterness I felt due to that probably made it all the easier for me to turn my back on the village and search for Orochimaru.

The way I would see them treat Naruto also sickened me. As much as I would mock the village idiot, I never shunned him like he was some sort of monster. I'm surprised Naruto could keep up his demented cheeriness. If it were me, I probably would've used the fox to kill them all. Maybe I was more like my brother than I at first would like to admit to myself.

I could hear Itachi standing up behind me, the warm pressure of his hands leaving my shoulders. I leaned back and looked up at him, though his gaze was fixed straight ahead, and not on my small form at his feet.

"You have two days."

"What?" I blinked up at him in confusion.

Itachi looked down at me stoically. "I said you have two days. That's all the time I can allow you. Get your strength back up and then we will train. We've run out of time to beat around the bush. Orochimaru is nearing his deadline, and I have places I need to be. It's time to grow up, Sasuke."

I watched my brother has he sat back in front of me. "I highly suggest you sleep. Whether you're ready or not, in two days, you will face the harshest training you have ever faced in your life. I will not go easy on you."

I nodded. Itachi was right, I had been improving gradually, but not at a fast enough rate. I wasn't sure if moving the training beyond my abilities at a rapid pace was the right way to go, but the time crunch was on and we had no choice. I went over and curled into Itachi's lap, happily with no objection from him. He sat there, as still as a stone statue, but considerably warmer and softer. I was unhappy about his comment about places to be, because I knew what that entitled. Still, my training would only help in that matter and give me a better chance of stopping Itachi before it was too late. My body happily gave in to sleep, and thankfully, the nightmares for once spared me.

* * *

"Sasuke, for the last time, stop leaving yourself so open when you attack."

I groaned and shut my eyes, my back sore against the rough tree bark. Itachi wasn't kidding me about this being the training from hell. My muscles still were weak from the Mangekyou, even after all these days, but true to Itachi's word, training started bright and early. What he had failed to mention before was that I was not permitted to use my sharingan to help me. As if I didn't have enough odds stacked up against me, Itachi felt it necessary to handicap me more. No Chidori, nothing fancy, just plain old feet and fists.

"Are you so weak? You're an Uchiha, get up," Itachi's voice commanded.

I grunted and got back to my feet. I was really expecting more Genjutsu-based training from Itachi, but when I asked him about it, he just laughed.

"_Without the Mangekyou, you're useless, Sasuke. Orochimaru could make you believe your own illusions were real."_

I ran up to face him again, this time trying to keep a better guard up while I attacked. Itachi blocked each of my moves flawlessly, and barked out my errors with each hit.

"Fix your stance. No, that's too much force and not enough accuracy. Focus. Watch your right side, you've left it open. Balance, Sasuke, I said fix your stance!"

And abruptly I found myself on the ground staring up at him while he stared down from over me.

"Always keep your center of gravity in mind, especially if you're preparing to kick out. Get up. You're going to do this until you get it right."

So again I was on my feet, and the cycle of training continued for the rest of the day, with me being criticized and thrown around. Thankfully, my brother was humane enough to allow me to take short breaks to eat and drink. I couldn't tell if Itachi was happy with my progress, and all I could think was that I better improve for all the muscle pains I was going to have the next day.

And I was quite right about the muscle pains. I woke up the next morning and gasped when I tried to sit up. Unfortunately, Itachi was already waiting for me, and told me to stop complaining.

This day he allowed me my sharingan, and it made a world of difference. It was still only feet and fists, but I found that I was able to get a couple of hits in and was more successful with my blocking. Itachi didn't find as much to criticize, but he made up for it by being extra difficult to fight with. I could see him watching my moves closely, every now and then catching hold of my hand or foot and altering the angle or suggesting a better target for it.

By the third day, my body was practically walking dead, but I ignored the pain and fought with a grin on my face. Itachi let me go all out, no handicaps, though with the state of my exhaustion, I wasn't daring enough to attempt Chidori or anything else that would dramatically drain my chakara. I wanted to impress him, make him proud, because I felt my own self getting better.

Itachi, always the stoic, never betrayed any of his thoughts with his facial expression. The sun was going down and casting a fiery red glow around him, making his crimson eyes seem to burn even more intensely. As I kicked out at his chest, he grabbed my foot, but instead of correcting my technique, he threw my leg aside. Unprepared for this, I stumbled, and he grabbed me around the waist from behind. From the warm breath trailing on the nape of my neck, I could tell that he had his face buried in my hair. Butterflies danced in my stomach, and I was still panting from the training, though I could've sworn my heart had doubled in its pace from my brother's closeness.

"I-Itachi…" I gasped. My body would have collapsed had it not been for his arms supporting my exhausted frame. Leave it to my brother to work me non-stop for three whole days and _then_ put some moves on me. That sounded cruel enough for him.

He lay me down on the ground, curling up very closely to my side, the Akatsuki cape over top of us. I was suffocating in his closeness and warmth, but it was a nice light-headed feeling which I much preferred to sitting in the cold with my brother several feet away. I looked up at him and leaned in, my lips contacting with his fingers, the only things separating his mouth from mine.

"Sleep, Sasuke. You know as well as I that you don't have the stamina at the moment."

I pouted and glared. Way to come on to me Itachi and then leave me hanging.

Itachi moved closer and chuckled in my ear. "Consider this a training in your patience. Now rest."

Even as I tried to continue to glare at him, I felt my eyelids becoming heavy against my own stubborn will, last registering one final smug smirk on my brother's lips.

* * *

Well, it's Christmas morning, and I scrambled to finish the chapter because I was determined to post it today, so I'm sorry if it seems sort of rushed. Again, I suck with fighting descriptions, so the training part is a little vague. 

Yes, most likely there will be a lemon next chapter unless something goes horribly wrong with my plans. Poor Sasuke needs a rest after working so hard; it's no fun to Itachi if he's too tired to squirm. I will try not to procrastinate or be lazy with the writing of next chapter. Thank you all for putting up with the wait for this chapter, which should've been 20 pages long for the time it took.


	14. Falls Apart

Whoo…I should really stop saying I wont procrastinate next time, because it only seems to make it worse. 'sweatdrop' Once again, I must thank my devoted fans that put up with my lateness/laziness. No real excuse this time for the delay. The wait has just been due to horrible procrastination, and lack of inspiration because there has been no Sasuke or Itachi in the manga for a very long time. But things are looking up, and I'm really hoping Sasu shows his sexy face in the next manga chapter or one soon after it. I'm really eager to see how close I got for Itachi's reasoning for destroying the village, if the creator ever discloses it. Had to use some Sasuke Itachi AMV's to get my motivation up to finish this.

I tried to make this chapter as long as I could to make up for your patience. I don't feel I did any of you justice with the length of the last chapter after the wait. I think we're drawing in for a close with this fic, or at least approaching the climax—as in the story climax (hehe, and for those who desperately need to know there **IS A LEMON IN THIS CHAPTER SO BEWARE**). Made some attempts to improve my fight scene descriptions, don't know if I succeeded or not.

Warning: Sasuke is very playful and slightly OOC at the beginning. He's getting in touch with his inner child. 'excuseexcuse'

* * *

Chapter 13: Falls Apart

I murmured in my sleep and shifted against a strange sensation of being weighed down. Opening my eyes, I winced at the sudden intrusion of light and then had to blink rapidly in order to convince myself that it wasn't just a side-effect of my temporary blindness. Itachi was next to me. Asleep. With his arms wrapped around me. He actually stayed and let me wake up in his arms. I felt a swell of happiness surge into my chest. I didn't really care if he only did it because he was tired and wanted to sleep in, all I could think about was that for the first time, he didn't leave my lying cold and alone. I watched his brow crease ever so slightly, and he spoke without opening his eyes.

"Sasuke, can you not keep still?"

I smirked. If I had a bucket of water I would definitely have dumped it over his head without a care for the consequences. Feeling strangely elated, I did the next thing that came to mind and tackled him, causing us both to go rolling a short distance. When we had stopped, Itachi had opened his eyes and looked up at me with an annoyed expression.

I grinned impishly down at him. "Come on now, you got me up early the past few days, and now you expect me to let you sleep in?"

Itachi gave a short grunt and rolled over, knocking me off him with his arm. He curled up into a more comfortable position, stubbornly keeping his eyes shut. "I worked you for three days solid. You should be exhausted."

"You're just sleeping in to bother me. I didn't forget what you promised last night."

Itachi made an indistinct sound. "I promised you nothing."

Snarling, I tackled him again, this time trying to pin his arms behind his back. As expected, he resisted and in turn pinned my arms back against the ground, now glowering over me. I grinned and licked his nose.

Maybe it was lightheadedness from fatigue and too much excitement that made me act this way, but if I could have Itachi again, I really didn't care how much of an ass I made of myself. After all, it was only the two of us. Not like this would circulate around Konoha or the Akatsuki—Itachi didn't seem to be much of a gossiper.

"You are such a nuisance." Itachi turned away, but I caught just the slightest upturn of his lips.

I sat up, wincing slightly as the pain in my back made itself known, but shrugged it aside. There were more important things on my mind, and I was not going to give up. Itachi was still kneeling on the ground, back to me, rearranging his slightly wrinkled cape. I wrapped my arms around his shoulders, nuzzling into the crook of his neck.

Itachi sighed. "You are persistent. Do you not bear any grudges against me?"

"Loads," I admitted. "And don't think you've gotten away with it. I'll give you a proper punishment when I'm ready."

Itachi raised an eyebrow and turned to me. "I'd like to see you try. Don't think you've improved all that much in the past few days."

"But I have improved."

"You have. In your sorry definition of 'improvement,'" Itachi said, standing.

I grabbed his hand, trying to pull him back down, glaring. Itachi just regarded my futile attempt before shaking his hand free and walking off.

"Jerk…" I growled under my breath, scrambling to my feet and racing after him.

Itachi had gone to a pond, and was kneeling down and rinsing his face. I really should have known better, but I couldn't resist trying to push him in. The result was that I found myself on my back in the shallows, soaked from head to toe where Itachi had flipped me.

"You really are quite pitiful, Sasuke," Itachi noted. I could see him smirk through my sopping wet bangs that had fallen into my face.

I rolled over onto my stomach, getting up and shaking my head to get rid of the water that was running into my eyes. "You promised!"

"Sasuke, are you really that desperate?"

"No." I glared. "…………..But you promised!"

Itachi just shook his head with a smirk.

"Stop toying with me Itachi! It's all you seem to do!" I found myself really getting irritated. Wow, I _must_ be desperate.

Once again, Itachi turned on his heel and started to move away. Leaping out of the water, I threw out a punch. He instantly turned around and blocked it, twisting my wrist to the side. To minimize the damage, I twisted around in the same direction, letting the momentum carry me as I aimed a kick at his chest. As expected, he blocked it, and I used his hand as a launching point to spring away back into the water, this time on my feet. Itachi's slightest movements were magnified to me through the sharingan, which had replaced my normal sense of sight.

Itachi folded his arms and shut his eyes, his bangs swaying slightly as he tilted his head to the side. "Hn. Not bad." His eyes slid open. "Do better."

Spurred by his challenge, I darted out of the water, my Chidori crackling with a fierce energy in my palm. It was a few seconds later after I had released it and was flipping away from Itachi's kick that I realized that I had been suckered into yet another fighting training session. Still, it was too late to back out now, as Itachi certainly seemed to be upping the level of difficulty when it came to blocking and countering him. During this surprise round, there were no verbal corrections, but I could tell quite clearly when Itachi disliked my strategy by his occasional disapproving sounds.

I could feel the blood coursing through my veins with a heightened sensitivity, my heart pounding in my ears. There was something exhilarating about fighting my brother. To think that he viewed me, if not but slightly, as worthy enough to spar with him in order to exercise my potential. I would like to believe that he wouldn't tolerate such a thing with any other person in the world.

He must've grown tired of the fight, because I soon found myself pinned to a tree, panting and out of breath. Looking up to meet his eyes, I couldn't help but shiver. There was something different reflected in them, and for a moment I feared it was the Mangekyou. It was only when his lips forcefully found mine that I grasped the true intention of his expression. Itachi was rougher than he had ever been before, and I had to put my own energy in to fight to keep up and maintain some semblance of control.

Itachi gave a low growl, grabbing the hair at the back of my head in a fist, and deepened the kiss. It was like we were still battling, only on a whole new level. My fingers dug themselves into his shoulders as my tongue fought for dominance with his ravishing one. My fingers clutched white-knuckled onto the fabric covering his pale smooth skin, yanking at it blindly. You're such a cruel, heartless bastard Itachi, but I only want you more.

I could feel my muscles complain as I arched against his body, but I stubbornly ignored them. It was a miracle my clothing didn't tear as Itachi wrenched it off. His eagerness sharply contradicted the indifferent demeanor he held earlier in the morning. We stood there with our foreheads pressed together, panting and regaining our breaths from the last kiss. Itachi ran his fingers through my hair and onto my shoulders and waist. I leaned in and nibbled on his neck, pulling his head closer to me, inviting him to retrace the territorial marks that had already faded.

Itachi's teeth grazed the skin on my neck, sending shivers up and down my spine. He paused at the cursed mark left by Orochimaru, and his teeth tightened slightly, as if he was tempted to just rip it out. When I gasped he relaxed his hold, lapping at the slightly bruised skin apologetically. He nuzzled his nose in my cheek and again we were kissing until I felt myself loosing balance from light-headedness.

My brother kept a firm grip on me, preventing me from falling. His fingers raked down my arms, undoing the bandages and wraps. They slid past my skin and unraveled on the ground, soon followed by the remainder of my clothing. His gaze was burning me up from the inside. I had so many intense emotions arising from that intent stare: lust, anxiety, nervousness and anticipation, all mixed in with a thrill of terror. It was hard not to look up into those eyes that could both cause so much anguish, yet contrastingly, so much happiness when they focused on me.

My hands shook ever so slightly as I trailed them down to his pants. I wanted to try what he had done to me the first night we had been together like this. Just to cause him the same undeniably wonderful sensations sent shivers of excitement through me. My brother arched an eyebrow as I undid his pants and cautiously kneeled down. I shut my eyes and slowly brought him into my mouth, praying that I was doing it right.

Itachi chuckled from above at my daring actions, and his hand ran through the hair on the back of my head, pushing me gently closer. I choked a little, but gradually I got used to the new experience. I was worried I was completely wrong in my technique until I finally heard a low moan emanate from Itachi. His fingers tightened into my hair, and he gently rocked his hips into my motion. I was grateful he was going easy on me; I could feel him trembling in restraint at the moderate pace that I could only handle at the moment. Despite my lack of experience, he seemed to enjoy it. His eyes were shut with his head bowed, soft pants bordering on moans increasing in frequency until suddenly I was overwhelmed by his abrupt orgasm.

I pulled away with a gasp, feeling stray trickles of the warm substance running over my bottom lip. Itachi kneeled down, his breath hoarse and panting like mine, and ran his tongue over my face, capturing the stray semen. Our lips meshed together once again, this time I had no fear of falling since we were already on the ground.

Gods, why didn't we do this more often? Each time seemed to get better and better. I worked on getting off the rest of my brother's clothes, eager to continue. Itachi gave a low chuckle as I fumbled with his shirt.

"You are so impatient," he observed.

"As if you aren't," I smirked back. Part of the reason I had trouble removing his shirt was that his wandering hands got in the way as they traveled all over my body.

Itachi's hips ground against mine as he brought me into another smothering kiss. I was so thoroughly involved in the sensations that I hadn't realized Itachi had prepared me until he thrust in. After that, my mind went blissfully blank. I arched against him, falling naturally into his rhythm. Itachi's fingers gripped onto my hips, raising them up for better access while my own fingers left deep trails in the dirt beneath us. I bit my lip and fought against the orgasm that I felt surging within my groin, not wanting to end the moment. Itachi's hand clasping around my member did nothing to ease the tightness, and after a few strokes I cried out, spilling against the both of us. Itachi drove into me and reached his own completion with a satisfied groan.

We stayed like that, frozen for a short time, before Itachi finally pulled out, placing a chaste kiss on my sweat-dampened forehead. He moved back down, once again licking away the mess I had caused on myself, and used piece of cloth to clean away the rest. Discarding the dirtied rag, Itachi once again crawled over me, cradling my form in his arms while he placed small kisses up and down my cheek and neck. This unusual sign of affection threw me, but I smiled and wrapped arms around him. Who was I to ruin such a rare moment? Eventually, Itachi rolled off beside me, wrapping his arms around my form and shutting his eyes.

I was just settling down to rest as well when I heard a soft 'poof,' followed by a curse muttered under Itachi's breath. He draped the cape over both of us and angrily regarded a Kisame that suddenly looked uncomfortable to be there. The shark-man's eyes darted everywhere but me and his colleague as he cleared his throat.

"I'm sorry. I didn't realize you were so…preoccupied."

"Just what the hell is it?" Itachi snapped. "Get on with it, Kisame."

"The Kyuubi has left the village. Konoha is in an uproar, unsure of whether the boy was kidnapped."

I stiffened, and felt Itachi do the same.

The blue-skinned nin continued. "Regardless of the circumstances, this is quite an inopportune time for them. Orochimaru and all."

Itachi nodded. "You doubt his involvement in the matter?"

Kisame shrugged, staring off just beyond Itachi's shoulder as he spoke. "Doubtful, but I wouldn't put it past him to take advantage of the turn of events. With the Kyuubi gone, it's practically like Konoha has swung its gates open and welcomed him in."

"What do you mean by that? That Konoha was expecting Naruto to protect them from Orochimaru?" I butted in. Much to my irritation, I was ignored.

"Orochimaru will start moving quickly now while the conditions are still favorable. The pressure is on to find the Kyuubi before anything else happens. If you have not heard, the retrieval of Shukaku was a partial failure."

"Shukaku?" I inquired, but once again was cut off.

"Hmph. As long as it was only partial. There is still time to fix everything," Itachi stated.

"We need to get going as soon as possible, before things get too messy."

"I thought you liked it messy."

Kisame gave a wicked grin. "I do, but the boss does not want to take a risk. If the Kyuubi should awaken prematurely…"

"I know. We'll leave immediately."

Kisame nodded and turned his back, tapping his bandaged club against the ground as he waited. Itachi pulled away from me and began to dress. I followed his actions, occasionally stealing glances back to make sure Kisame kept his eyes turned the other way. I then focused my attention back on my brother, who was sliding on his undershirt.

"You're going after Naruto, aren't you?"

Itachi leaned down and pulled up his cloak, dusting off the dirt smudged over the clouds. "I really think that is none of your concern, Sasuke. Regardless of my answer, I expect no complaints from you."

I grabbed Itachi's arm and pulled him closer, lowering my voice to try and keep out of the hearing range of Kisame's ears, who were no doubt eagerly listening in on the sudden conflict between Itachi and I.

"What you're doing is wrong. Nothing good is going to come out of this! Stop this before something bad happens."

Itachi shook his arm free, giving me a stony look. "You may be my younger brother, Sasuke, but do not think that I will allow you to stand in my way again. I will not be so merciful next time."

"What if something goes wrong?"

"Then I'll deal with it."

I growled under my breath. "Think this through."

"I already have," Itachi countered coolly. "Are you done?"

"No." I narrowed my eyes. "You're making a mistake."

Itachi leaned in. "I believe I have the right to do as I please without your petty worrying. Now if you're not going to cooperate, no one is dragging you anywhere."

"You heard Kisame. Orochimaru will be more active one he gets wind of Naruto being away. Which means he'll be after me again."

Itachi's voice grew more menacing with every word. "I am sorry if I have given you the impression that my life revolves around your needs. I have given you a choice: you may assist in the capture of the Kyuubi, or you can stay behind and do whatever the hell you want. Either way, if you get in my way again, I will spare no mercy upon you, brother or not."

"How can you be so blind? I've always looked up and respected you, but now I see you doing something as stupid as this."

"Don't question my judgment. I've made my choice."

"But it's the wrong one!"

"Then stay here." With that, Itachi turned away and walked to Kisame. "Let's go."

"Nii-san!" I yelled, trying to get his attention. He didn't even bother to spare me a glance.

Watching him walk away, so blind and dead-set on a one-way track to disaster, I could only helplessly realize how Naruto must have felt when I gave him the cold shoulder and left for Orochimaru. Naruto had been right all along. It was power; that was all we Uchihas really ever valued in the end. Everything else was trivial. Gaining power was the primary goal, even at the expense of friends, family, or even our own lives. I had finally woken up and seen this, and already it was too late. How could I make Itachi see what seemed to be against our own nature? I ran forward in the direction he and Kisame had disappeared, only to find no one. Not a clue was left behind as to what direction they had taken.

I wanted to call out to him, but my better sense shut me up before the air could escape my throat. It was common sense not to shout in a strange place when there could be enemies around. It would do me no good to be careless just because everything was falling into disarray around me. I was worried for my brother, I was worried for Naruto, and I was wary of the new turn of events that I'm sure did not bode well for any of us. That was no reason, however, to let those feelings take over and make the situation worse.

I was unsure of what to do. My first thought was to go searching for Naruto, but memories of my failure to protect him from Itachi discouraged me. If I tried to pull the same stunt again, Itachi would no doubt kill me. He had made his priorities clear. How could I stop him before it was too late? However, if I did nothing and allowed Itachi to try and extract the Kyuubi…. The thought of loosing both Naruto and my brother in one blow was something I did not want to face.

I settled for wandering aimlessly, trying to come up with some feasible plan to deal with the turn of events. Much to my surprise I saw a familiar shock of blonde just beyond the bushes in front of me. I couldn't believe my dumb luck. Springing forward, I ran up to the dobe.

"Naruto!"

Naruto turned and looked at me before he glared and ran. I paused in surprise before picking up the pace and running after him. In retrospect, it made sense. Naruto had no reason to believe in good intentions from me, especially after I had proved to be working alongside my brother. Still, I had to catch him and make him understand that despite the fact that I loved my brother, he still mattered to me. He mattered more than I would even admit to myself. He had become like a brother to me, but unlike Itachi, one I felt I could trust unconditionally. I didn't want to lose that.

"Dobe, please wait up! I need to talk to you!"

He ignored me and kept running. I growled and took to the trees, trying to cut him off, but with little success. Naruto had gotten fast and uncharacteristically graceful. I would've thought he'd at least have made a stupid mistake and tripped by now. The forest began to thicken, and I worried that I'd lose sight of him. Jumping down and making my way back on the ground, I found Naruto had stopped, and was staring up in awe at the temple that housed Orochimaru.

I felt my breath catch in my throat. This was not a good place to be. I had been so intent on catching up to Naruto that I had failed to notice the familiar landmarks around the area that would have warned me that I was heading this way. I had to get us out of here, fast. I darted up to Naruto, and grabbed his wrist.

"Naruto, I can explain later, but we can't be here. Come on." I gave his arm a slight tug.

Naruto turned to look at me, his blue eyes shimmering in triumph. I backed away warily, slowly releasing his wrist. The look on the dobe's face didn't quite fit. The hair on the back of my neck prickled, warning me against danger from behind. I quickly swept my eyes around to find myself surrounded by sound nin, Naruto standing in front of the temple's entrance. He stepped forward with a grin.

"What's the matter Sasuke? You chased me all the way here, and now you've nothing to say?"

I backed away as he approached, feeling horribly cornered. No….Naruto wouldn't do this. This was all just an—

Naruto shimmered and Kabuto stood in his place. "You are far too easy to fool with just a simple illusion. Had I known it would have worked so well, I would have done this sooner. It's funny that your brother is so skilled in the art of Genjutsu and you were easily tricked by such a simple one."

I scowled as the sound nin closed in, forcing me forward as Kabuto stepped off to the side.

"Come on now, brat. We mustn't keep Orochimaru waiting any longer than he already has. He has been remarkably patient with you."

I had no choice but to go forward as the nin closed in from behind. Kabuto walked beside me, keeping a firm grip on my arm that made me want to lash out. Doing so would be stupid; I couldn't attempt such a risky thing with so many enemies around. I wouldn't be able to defend myself from these numbers. Instead my mind whirred, first at how stupid I was to fall into such a trap, and then with any possibility of fixing this before it got worse.

The familiar doors that lead into the room that housed Orochimaru loomed before me. I was grabbed, and as I struggled, felt my weapons being removed by some of the sound-nin. Kabuto gave me a none-too-gentle push forward as the doors opened. I shot him a dirty look and stepped into the room with confidence, determined not to show any sign of weakness to him or the silhouetted figure in the chair.

It was as if Orochimaru hadn't moved since I had last been there. When I moved close enough to see him, he was in the exact same position, if not a little worse for wear. The skin on his face looked like it was peeling, and hung taut over his cheekbones like a drum-skin. Everything seemed to be fading on him, his hair seemed thinner than usual, and I could clearly see the details of bone through the translucent skin of his hands. It was like standing in front of a living corpse, and if it wasn't for the moving glowing eyes, I would've declared Konoha had no fear because Orochimaru was already dead.

"So at last the elusive Sasuke has graced us with his presence." Despite all appearances, Orochimaru's voice was still strong. He twined his fingers together and regarded my figure. "It's a pity you were so difficult. I was going to teach you some wondrous things if you had only cooperated."

I snorted and said nothing.

The snake shut his eyes with a chuckle. "Oh well, it's far too late anyway. It matters little to me whether you are happy or not, regardless, I shall get my way in the end. You see Sasuke, your flaw is the same as the rest of your clan. You are too stubborn, too disobedient, and far too power-hungry for your own good. It's unwise to bite the hand that feeds you." Orochimaru leaned forward, his eyes gleaming. "I could've given you power beyond your imagination, Sasuke. I could have given you the world. You would have been able to crush Konoha, that hated home that had forsaken you, with your own hands."

The pale nin leaned back with a casual shrug. "I suppose you still can. But unfortunately for you, I don't have the patience to deal with your treachery. So I'm afraid I'll have to borrow that fine figure of yours, along with those lovely eyes. Oh how I've longed for such eyes…."

Orochimaru zoned out for a moment and I shifted, but the three nin and Kabuto that remained in the room were tensed and ready in case I made a move.

Orochimaru finally snapped out of his trance and regarded me with a cold look. "You've run from me long enough, Sasuke. It's time to face up to your destiny." The pale nin elegantly brought his hand forward. "Get him."

I tensed as the three sound nin darted at me from all sides. Kabuto stood in between me and Orochimaru, watching calmly as I battled off my new foes. I didn't like this at all. Orochimaru was enjoying the show far too much, a little visual representation of what he soon hoped to gain. Well I liked my body just fine, and I wasn't going to have my brother's sacrifice and sparing me amount to nothing. I would fight for my sharingan, my mind, and my pride.

Despite being outnumbered, the fight wasn't too bad. It was a pleasant experience to actually get several blows in, and Itachi's ruthlessness made me extra cautious with my guarding. My sharingan proved invaluable to keep up with the movements coming at me from all sides, and I half wished that I also had a bit of the Hyuuga byakugan in me for extra support.

I got one down, and things got easier. Unfortunately, throughout the fight, all I could see was Kabuto standing by, the inevitable challenge when I was finished with these half-rates. As expected, needles were flung my way the moment the last enemy dropped under my fist. Luckily for me, Kabuto had over-anticipated it, and I was still able to grab the falling nin's body and use it as a makeshift shield.

Kabuto approached, and it seemed his goal was to paralyze or drug me since he avoided physical attacks. I suppose Orochimaru wouldn't want damaged and bruised goods. Unfortunately, this was much to my disadvantage, since all my throwing weapons had been taken away. All I could do was try to get close in to hit Kabuto while still avoiding his thin projectiles.

The silver-haired nin seemed surprised at my stamina and speed. I guess he figured I'd be weary after fighting three to one. In all honesty, it was nothing compared to the length of time Itachi had made me keep up my energy. Sometime in those few days I had learned how to budget my energy and use it to my best advantage. Such a skill was proving invaluable at this time, and I silently thanked my brother for his help.

I got close enough to grab his wrist and knock the needles out of his hand, and swung my leg around to try and trip him. Kabuto was just as fast and brought his leg back, locking mine in its grip and swinging me around. I brought my hands out to cushion the impact and flipped over back onto my feet. As soon as I was upright, I realized too late that Kabuto had also thrown more of the paralysis needles when he had flung me away. Praying that I still had time to dodge, I threw myself to the side.

I mentally sighed in relief as the needles simply snagged in my clothing. I had moved just enough so that they did not sufficiently penetrate my skin. Ripping them out, I saw Kabuto approaching, more needles at the ready. Using my better judgment, I faked the symptoms I had known all too well from my previous encounters with Kabuto's needles. Letting my legs give out beneath me, I fell and lay still, like a broken doll, praying that my acting would fool Kabuto.

The sound-nin cautiously approached me, nudging me with his foot while tensed and ready. I glared up at him furiously without moving, then allowed my gaze to unfocus, as if the last of the drug was finally taking effect. Luckily, I seemed to have Kabuto convinced, and he hauled up my limp form. With the help of a couple guarding nin supporting me, I was brought in front of Orochimaru.

Looking up into those burning yellow eyes that held the only spark of life in Orochimaru's feeble frame, I suddenly realized the purpose of Itachi's physical training of me. That was Orochimaru's weakness. The snake probably could recite and perform every jutsu known without batting and eyelash, but without a strong capable body, he could only get so far.

It all fell into place. That's why he needed my body, for the strength and sharingan, and Kabuto for the Mangekyou. He was at his weakest right now, before his present body expired. The future of myself, Konoha, and countless other villages and people rested on this defining moment. His emaciated hands reached out like translucent spiders to grasp me and pull me towards him eagerly. Triumph burned in his eyes, his ultimate victory finally standing before him.

I allowed him to bask in the overconfidence that was to be his downfall, still playing the role of a listless being. His skeletal fingers ran through my hair, pulling me close. I felt warmth as they began to glow and a strange sensation of my mind being pulled away from my body took over.

Before Orochimaru could proceed any farther, I sprang to life. The sudden kick at the snake's chest broke Orochimaru's concentration, and it took him a split second to register what was happening and retaliate. Kabuto gave a cry of outrage, but I didn't give him a chance to get a hold of me. I needed no weapon but my own self as I leapt at Orochimaru. His body was as fragile as glass, and one good blow would shatter it.

As I hurtled towards Orochimaru, I hit an invisible force that felt like crashing through ice cold water. The snake had disappeared, and instead there stood my brother, holding the limp form of Naruto. My eyes widened as he walked towards me, a smirk playing on his features. His Mangekyou was gone, and instead was replaced with slitted red eyes that were not his own. The fox demon stared out at me through my brother, a grin sliding across his features.

"This vessel is much more to my tastes. I have no need for this anymore."

Itachi walked forward and placed the lifeless shell of Naruto in my arms, the spark having left the eyes, making them a vacant blue. I couldn't help but shake as I looked down at what once was Naruto. I couldn't save him. He had done everything he could to try and save me, and in the end, I had only turned my back and allowed this to happen. Some friend I was. I didn't deserve Naruto's concern, his unending companionship. He came after me when everyone had walked out. He was the only one in Konoha that understood what it was like to be alone, to loose everything. He didn't throw me pity parties like the rest of them. Naruto treated me like a regular person, as a friend, no matter how badly I acted.

And Itachi… I looked up at him and felt my eyes sting to see no glimmer of my brother in those blazing eyes. Itachi was gone, swallowed up by his own greed and ambition for power. He and I were the same, traveling on the same destructive path, blinded to the consequences at the end. I had run to Orochimaru to loose my body, and Itachi had gone and sold his soul in order to be a puppet of the Kyuubi. Why were we so stubborn and stupid? Why couldn't we see all the people that cared for us?

I was all alone in the world. Naruto and Itachi were the only ones I had to live for. I had burned too many bridges, and there was no going back. I wondered what I would do now…. Life just seemed so empty.

Something was nagging in the back of my mind, and I tried to push it away, wanting to curl up in my oblivion and disappear. I couldn't die…I couldn't make my brother's actions mean nothing in the end. I had to live for him and preserve my sharingan for any that wanted to claim it as their own. The nagging grew stronger, and I furrowed my brow as the sky seemed to ripple strangely.

The Kyuubi in Itachi's form gripped my arm tightly, bringing pain that threatened to cloud my senses, but I pushed it back and tried to focus on the feeling that was bothering me. I had to live, break free so that I wouldn't just become a repeat of Itachi. I needed to learn from his mistakes as he had told me once before. I had to kill Orochimaru and reclaim my dignity as an Uchiha. As everything became crystal clear, I could feel my surroundings shattering in millions of tiny shards, and once again, Orochimaru was before me. (1)

Memories came flooding back at full force after breaking through the illusion, and I continued forward with my intent dead-set in my mind. Orochimaru's eyes widened to see me bringing my fist back, blue energy crackling violently, my burning red eyes locked on him.

A sharp pain shot across my neck and I could feel my curse spreading like hot flames licking across my body. I remembered how Itachi had bitten it in such hatred of the branded mark. I grit my teeth and continued forward, fighting the feeling that threatened to overtake my senses. I was stronger than the curse, I could withstand it. I felt the flickering feeling recede as the curse went under my control.

Orochimaru narrowed his eyes and my head became foggy again, but I forced myself to maintain focus. Killing Orochimaru was the only thing that mattered now. Grotesque images flashed through my head. My dead family. Itachi ripped open by the Kyuubi. Naruto being kicked around and stoned to death by the villagers. My own body, spewing blood over my brother that had stabbed me in the back.

I narrowed my eyes and brought my glowing fist back to strike Orochimaru. It seemed like an eternity since I had started my initial attack, but it was only mere seconds. There was a sickening cracking sound as my fist with the chidori contacted his sternum.

(A/N: I sooo wanted Kabuto to leap forward last minute to protect Orochimaru, but I felt that would be too Haku of me. Grr Haku, why did you have to die?)

Orochimaru went flying back farther and smashed against the wall. I brought my leg up to crush his head but was thrown to the side by Kabuto lunging at me. We rolled over the rough ground, exchanging blows. The silver-haired nin seemed to be blinded with rage, much to my advantage. In the middle of our brawl, two skeletal arms wrapped around Kabuto from behind, and Orochimaru pulled himself against the nin. I realized what he was doing as I saw the light begin to fade in Kabuto's eyes. With a yell, I kicked out, separating them and disrupting the transfer.

While Kabuto was still dazed, I jumped over him and brought my fist down on Orochimaru again. My hand was coated in an unpleasantly warm sticky substance and looked down to see that my fist had gone clean into Orochimaru's chest. The snake's nails dug into my arm, and I winced at their iron grip hold burying into my skin. Again he tried to tug at my mind, but I was unrelenting. I could see victory in sight, but unlike him I was not going to get overconfident too soon.

Orochimaru hissed, and his tongue slid out and wrapped around my throat, threatening to strangle me. I struggled against it and pulled my blood-soaked hand out of his chest, trying to work my own fingers around the nin's brittle neck. I gasped as my air passage began to close, and fought against my darkening vision. My grip tightened and a sharp cracking sound was heard as my hands finally finished rotating around. The tongue slid limply off my neck, leaving a slick trail that made my cuts burn.

Panting for breath, I looked down at Orochimaru's body, his chest ripped open, and his neck at a horribly odd angle, a bit of the spine protruding through the skin of his neck. I got up rapidly, disgusted by what I saw. I warily looked for signs of life, but there were none. Still, Orochimaru had looked so dead to begin with, that it was difficult to accept that the horror of his existence had finally vanished.

I had killed.

Blood drenched my hands and arms, and I was appalled at the rush that it gave me. At the same time I flinched away from the putrid odor of death. It all seemed unreal that I had actually killed Orochimaru, one of the most powerful and wanted nin. I had saved Konoha while saving myself, and somehow, without a mastery of complex and advanced techniques, Orochimaru lay dead at my feet.

I was so lost in my thoughts that it was only Kabuto's cry of agony that finally shook me from my stupor.

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Whew….finally done. To be honest, I wasn't planning for Orochi's death to come specifically in this chapter, but as the writing progressed it smoothly fell into place. I hope this is long enough to satiate you guys, I'll refrain from stating when I'll update next….we'll just have to see how lazy/busy I get. ;) God that lemon took me forever to write…

(1) NOTE: There seemed to be a lot of confusion with this part. The Kyuubi is NOT in Itachi. At least not yet. :P The part depicting Naruto dead and Itachi being taken over by the demon fox was an illusion by Orochimaru to freak Sasuke out. It didn't work though, because Sasuke didn't fully believe. Hope that makes sense.


	15. Awaken the Beast

I am the worst procrastinator ever. Yeah, I know the chapter should be at least double this length, but it consisted only of a paragraph for over a month until now. Yay! One more final on the 22nd and I'm free for the summer! Well…….except for work…..stupid work…..but I shouldn't hate it too much; that's where this fanfic was born anyway. :) I hope this chapter isn't too disappointing for the wait.

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Chapter Fourteen: Awaken the Beast 

All too late, I tried to dodge as Kabuto's fist—crackling with a suffocating energy—came upon my chest. I felt my heart giving a painful jolt, and I tried to pry his hand away as pain enflamed my nerves. Suddenly it all stopped as if someone had hit a switch, and Kabuto slumped to the ground, unconscious. A bandaged club took his place, and I looked up into the piercing eyes of Kisame, who gave an annoyed snort.

"Let's get out of here, now that you feel like a man for beating up an old feeble geezer."

I looked around and noticed that there seemed to be quite a few unconscious or presumably dead sound nin scattered across the room. I must not have noticed Kisame enter during all the chaos of getting at Orochimaru.

"What are you doing here?" I demanded to know. Did Itachi send him?

Kisame ignored my question and slung his club over his shoulder. "Are you coming?"

I gave an exasperated sigh and hurried to catch up with him as he strode out. Normally, I hated Kisame's guts, but at the moment he was the path to my brother. Kisame didn't try to make conversation with me as we walked as he normally would with Itachi. Not that I minded; chances were likely I'd be just a silent as my brother. We put up with each other for the journey.

I placed a hand on the back of my neck, feeling something different there. Kisame glanced over.

"It's gone," was all he stated.

I rubbed my neck briefly. That explained why I no longer felt the tingling of the curse. Made sense, now that the creator of it was dead. It felt as if a large weight had been taken off my shoulders, unfortunately only to be replaced by another one, brought upon by my brother.

"Does he have Naruto?" I finally asked after quite some time of walking.

Kisame made an indistinguishable grunt.

"In civilized speak that would be…?" I prompted sarcastically.

Kisame just shot me a glare.

I rolled my eyes and didn't pursue it any farther. Chances were the dimwit didn't have a clue. Almost as if he heard my thought—mind you it was probably written all over my face—his eyes narrowed.

"I don't have to take you anywhere, you know. I could've just left you there to rot while the sound nins in their mad scrambled for power took you down."

I smirked back at him coolly. "Yet you still came to get me. It would be unwise to displease my brother."

Kisame's lip curled back. "What makes you think I'm acting under his orders?"

"Oh?" I said in mock surprise. "You mean you came to save me out of the goodness of your heart? You shouldn't have."

Kisame growled and kept quiet for a while. Finally he stopped walking. "This is as far as I take you."

I scanned the area. Seeing nothing but trees, I folded my arms. "Where's my brother?"

"This is as far as I take you," he repeated, and began to leave. I reached out to grab his arm and then found his club mere millimeters away from my head, in between us.

"Don't push me," Kisame growled. "Because whether Itachi likes it or not, if you keep bothering me, I will split your skull open."

I glared at his threat, but stepped back. "I want to see Itachi."

"Then find him yourself. I've done my part." And with that, Kisame vanished in a puff of smoke.

I sighed and looked around. Well, that was a whole lot of use. If I had known he was just going to drag me out to a random location, I would have ditched his company ages ago. I surveyed the area critically, trying to find any trace of my brother being by here. Knowing him, he had probably ordered that shark to deliberately take me off the trail. I still couldn't let him get away with using Naruto for the Kyuubi. Memories were still fresh from Orochimaru's illusion of the Kyuubi taking over my brother, and I didn't want to have to relive that in reality.

I took off through the trees, heading in an arbitrary direction. I was sure to run across something eventually. Just my luck for me to end up running _into_ something. With a grunt I fell backwards, hands instantly on my kunai to defend myself. I heard a familiar shout and looked up to see Naruto groaning and rubbing his back as he stood. His bright blue eyes widened when he saw me. I'm sure his look of surprise matched the one on my face. He opened his mouth to speak, and then as if he forgot something, looked behind him and ran past.

"Hey, dobe!" I said, scrambling to my feet. I didn't think this was another Kabuto. I couldn't think of who else it'd be so I had to assume this was the original.

I ran forward after him only to be stopped in mid-air by an arm closing around my waist from behind, leaving me dangling in midair and pressed up against the stranger. I jabbed the kunai back towards their stomach, only to have it stopped right before it could penetrate.

"How many times do I have to tell you to fix your angle?" Itachi's voice hissed in my ear.

"Nii-sa—ugh!" I was unceremoniously dropped mid-speech and Itachi hurried past me. "Hey!" I yelled, running off after the red and black cape. Naruto's rush seemed to be well-founded after all. I wondered why Itachi was bothering to run after him. I was sure he'd be able to catch Naruto no problem. I suddenly got the image of a smug cat toying with a mouse that it knew couldn't escape.

"Itachi!" I yelled out after him, running after the two. No….I've made it too far to lose now.

Itachi of course didn't bother to slow down or stop, and since he wasn't, there was no way Naruto was going to either. As it seemed to be the only way I was going to catch up with them, I brought out another kunai, throwing it wide. Quickly I performed the hand seals and used kawarimi to take the kunai's place, bringing me just barely behind Naruto. I went crashing into him from the momentum for the second time that day.

We both went tumbling to the ground, but I had already turned around while I fell, making more hand seals and bringing my fingers to my mouth. Bright flames erupted from my mouth, growing and forming a large fireball at where my brother was. I landed backwards on top of Naruto as I finished the katon. I could feel the blonde panting heavily behind me, his breath hot on the back of my neck. I ignored the shiver it sent through me and instead focused on the smoldering trees where my brother had been.

"You're getting clever," his voice said from behind me.

I whirled around, crouching just over Naruto protectively, my last kunai in my hand. Itachi stood there stoically and regarded me.

"It's such a shame you're putting your talent to waste for such a futile goal."

"It's not futile!" I shouted back. "I've never been so sure of anything in my life!"

Itachi cocked an eyebrow. "Are you ready to kill me then?"

"No," I stated firmly, the grip tightening around my kunai. "I'm ready to save you from yourself and make you see your mistakes. You showed me that I was wrong to go seek out Orochimaru. Well now he's dead, and I'm free. It's time I returned the favour and freed you."

"Free me? Sasuke, do you listen to yourself speak?" my brother said, his eyes narrowing.

I could feel Naruto shifting under me, and I placed my foot firmly on his leg, not breaking gaze with Itachi.

"I'm not going to let the striving for power consume you like it almost did me."

"Is that so?" Itachi questioned coolly, stepping forward a few paces. I stiffened, ready for attack. He stopped just short of us. "And you're acting out of concern for me and not by any pathetic weak attachments you just can't let go of with this boy?"

I grit my teeth, and Itachi's hand went around my throat, squeezing slightly.

"I've told you time and time again. You're weak. You don't hate. I gave you every reason in the world to hate, and you still can't. What is wrong with you?"

My fingers tightened around his wrist, trying to pry him away, dropping my kunai. I didn't have time to see if it missed clunking against Naruto or not.

Itachi's voice was venomous. "What will you gain from saving him from me? Do you think there's going to be a happy ending; that the Kyuubi's presence will just fade away into insignificance? Someday, somehow, it's going to get out of its vessel, and even then you will be helpless to do anything. At least I'm putting it to good use. Your weak feelings blind you. This is reality Sasuke. It's cold and harsh. After all I put you through, I thought that maybe it would sink in." His grip tightened even more and I gagged. "But you're just as weak as ever."

Weak. Each time he said it, the word stabbed into me. But I wasn't backing down. To me, that would've been weak. Naruto never gave up on me, despite my complete defiance and repeated betrayals. I was not going to walk away from this, even if it meant standing out against my brother's wishes. Stars danced in front of my eyes as my vision faded in and out. Itachi's hand had tightened so much that my air passage was constricted too much to breathe.

"Let go of him!" I heard a voice snarl from below, and suddenly I was falling back, too dizzy from lack of oxygen to break my own fall. I sat up slowly, my head spinning as I cracked my eyes open.

Naruto was in between my brother and me. He was in a half-standing, partially crouched position, red chakra flaring up around him, some of it streaming off into what looked like tail-like formations. I remembered it all too well from my fight with him.

Itachi stood there, his face as expressionless as ever. He shut his eyes finally, a slight hint of anger in his voice.

"You had to come along and make things more difficult, didn't you?" he snapped at me.

I watched as Naruto partially turned, his slitted red eyes fixing upon me.

"Naruto…" This was slightly different from before. I felt more power surging out from the blonde this time, if that were possible. There seemed to be more red chakra tails as well.

Naruto turned back to face Itachi, his lips still bared into a snarl. Itachi didn't move, but his eyes were fixed on Naruto. I scrambled to my feet as Naruto let out a roaring yell, launching at Itachi.

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Itachi is sooooo jealous. 'sniggers and runs away before he kills her' 

To my reviewers, I love you! It's so nice to be surrounded by Uchihacest supporters! You guys make my day. :3 You and Naruto AMVs….. 'current obsession and inspiration'


	16. Freedom

Hey. Long time no write.

I know I say this practically every chapter, but sorry for the wait. This chapter was especially needlessly delayed, because it is the last chapter, and I was torn how to end it. So summer slid past and I dove into Kingdom Hearts fandom and cosplaying and friends, and then schoolwork hit and I realized with the continual prodding of reviews that I still hadn't done anything to wrap the fanfic up. Like I said from the beginning, this story was not discontinued—it's my pride and joy in fanfiction, and as such I was worried I'd end it horribly and ruin it.

Sasuke yells a lot in this chapter. 'sweatdrop'

Anyway, I hope this meets your satisfaction, at least slightly. I can't tell you enough how wonderful all you reviewers are, and I appreciate the occasional pokes and scolding for not updating. Thank you for sticking with and continuing to read my fic!

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Chapter Fifteen: Freedom

Everything was happening in a blur. Naruto was fighting with Itachi. I couldn't see if Itachi had tried to use his Mangekyou, but if he had it didn't seem to be working. The fight seemed completely physical, and either it was well matched or Itachi was testing the extent of Naruto's power like Kabuto had done to me. I didn't know what to do and felt completely helpless as I watched them exchange blows.

"Itachi! Naruto!" I yelled out, to no avail.

The chakra around Naruto was getting brighter and more intense, more tails gradually springing forth behind him. Shit…if the Kyuubi fully took over, there was nothing me or my brother could do. As strong as Itachi was, I doubted he could match the raw power of the demon fox that we were only experiencing a miniscule fraction of.

Itachi managed to knock Naruto back, sending the fox child skidding across the ground, leaving steaming trenches under his feet and claws. Naruto's eyes were blazing at an intensity I had never experienced before, and the feeling of chakra around us was smothering. Six tails swayed around in mesmerizing patterns as Naruto licked his bloodied lips with his tongue. Itachi's face was dead serious, and he hunkered down into a ready position. He knew he was dealing with something more than just a blonde peer of mine.

I couldn't stay on the sidelines. How could either of them expect me to sit and watch this all unfold in front of me, helpless to take action? I didn't know who I wanted to win. They were both so important to me.

My brother, though outwardly an ass, cared about me. His words about protecting the sharingan and wanting an avenger, they all may have held truth, but in the end I knew he had spared me because of something more. I was his little brother, and as much as he denied it, he couldn't let me go.

Naruto, the dobe, was always there, looking out for me. He treated me like a person. To him I was not just some prodigy, or some tragic figure that needed to be dealt with carefully. I was a rival, and he was mine. In the same way Itachi pushed me to better myself, Naruto strove to do the same. All our fights and disagreements made us stronger. Naruto was genuine. If there was one person in the village who I was positive treated me just the way he felt, it was him. No beating around the bush, no openly trying to please me. Naruto said what he meant, and stuck to his word through thick and thin. He was the one who accomplished the most when given the least. All this time I had been jealous of him, but would never openly admit it.

Naruto and Itachi sized each other up. My eyes widened with dread as I saw more and more of Naruto slip away as the Kyuubi gradually took over.

"Naruto!" I called out, trying to divert his attention away from Itachi. Just leave him alone. Leave my foolish brother alone.

He ignored me and crouched down, ready to spring while my brother tensed for the coming attack.

"Naruto!!!!"

Still nothing as the muscles flexed and rippled in the blonde's body.

"NARUTO!!!" I screamed, racing forward and he leapt up and darted towards my brother. I skidded in front of him, blocking his path. "YOU DOBE, STOP IT!" I yelled to any fragment of Naruto that I prayed was left.

The blonde grabbed me by the shoulders, and a searing burning pain swept through me as I was momentarily overrun by chakra. I looked up into the blazing eyes, and was relieved to see that they were blue. He didn't let go as he glared at me, his grip painful.

"He's not worth it. He's not worth anything," Naruto said, his face still in a snarl.

"He's worth everything," I said evenly back.

Naruto stared at me, in disbelief, as if trying to figure me out. The red chakra tails had slowly receeded. I was surprised they had gone away as fast as they had arisen, but I suppose Naruto was stronger that I ever would take him for.

Our moment was interrupted by me getting pulled back. Itachi sprung forward and grabbed Naruto, taking off with him.

"NO!" I yelled, tearing after them.

Itachi hurt me once by taking away something I loved; he wasn't going to do it again. I caught up to him in a clearing. Naruto was limp in his arms and Itachi dropped him roughly to the ground.

"I'm not going to lose you to that fox," I snarled, grabbing Itachi's wrist.

His hand flung back and backhanded me across the face, making me stumble backwards from the force. I glared upwards at him while he ignored me. Itachi pulled out a device, securing it to Naruto's chest.

"Itachi! NO!" I screamed, trying to get him away from the blonde still, with no success. My mind was torn. I should try to kill Itachi, do something to stop him, because once the spirit of the fox took over my brother, he'd be as good as dead anyway. I couldn't bring myself to do it, even as Itachi continued to ignore me, leaving himself open for attack. Was he doing it on purpose to see what I would do?

I growled and rammed Itachi with all the force I could muster. He grabbed me last minute, flipping me over his body. I lay there, winded on the ground, as Itachi continued to do something with the thing on Naruto's chest.

"Nii-san no baka," I muttered, glaring up at Itachi while my body recovered from the force of the blow. "What do you expect to gain from this? Losing yourself to the fox. Power is nothing without control, and you're giving up the control. You might as well have handed yourself over to Orochimaru as a puppet in the first place."

"Foolish Sasuke, that was your path," Itachi said without emotion. He didn't stop his task.

"Are you even listening to me Itachi!? Are you deaf? You certainly are blind to the risk you're running!" I finally managed to roll up into a crouching position, planning to attack Itachi again.

"Save your strength," Itachi said coldly, not bothering to look up at me.

"How can I sit here and watch you do this? He was all I had left when you took away everything. I wont let you take him away too just because you're jealous."

"Jealous? You assume I can feel those base emotions that you are in turmoil with," Itachi said.

"Stop acting, it's not working." I snarled, once again leaping to attack him. This time I dodged his arm and moved my fist to plant into his stomach. Itachi had to turn his attention away in order to block me. I wasn't concerned with my little accomplishment, but my mind was more plagued with worry about Naruto, who had gone deathly pale as the device began to glow.

"You're going to destroy yourself and everyone!" I yelled, not letting up on my attack. Itachi blocked each of my blows, but didn't seem to be attempting any of his own.

"You need to grow up, Sasuke," he said emotionlessly.

"And you need to open your eyes!" I yelled, bringing my fist back. To my surprise, it connected with his face.

Itachi's head remained turn to the side, a smirk cast upon his features. He let out a soft chuckle, much to my surprise. Slowly he turned his head to look at me.

"I'm glad I spared you."

I glared at him, still panting and riled from my anger.

"You make a pathetic avenger Sasuke, but you're at least entertaining," Itachi smirked.

"Cut the crap Itachi!" I snarled, rushing to Naruto.

Itachi stopped me with his arms. "Don't interfere. He's not finished yet."

I struggled against his hold. "You bastard! You jerk! You heartless monster!" I clawed in Itachi's grip as I watched the red glowing become alarmingly intense. All the colour seemed to be drained from Naruto's skin, scaring me. Naruto. I couldn't lose Naruto.

Itachi watched calmly, ignoring my outcries. After a few moments he flung me aside and walked to the unconscious blonde. He grabbed the device and wrenched it from Naruto's chest. There was a blinding flash of red light that forced me to shield my eyes.

"ITACHIIIIII!!!!!!"

My world went black.

* * *

I woke up to the smell of burning and opened my eyes. There was a thick veil of grey smoke all around me. I scrambled to my feet, coughing.

"Itachi! Naruto!" I called out, panicked. I could barely see as I fumbled around. Even with my sharingan it was hard maneuver.

I saw a dark form on the ground and rushed over, fear clutching my chest painfully. Naruto lay there, dark bags under his eyes.

"Naruto," I said with a hoarse voice. I blamed the thick dust all around us for the stinging in my eyes and soreness of my throat. "Naruto!" I shook the dobe. "Wake up. Shit Naruto, wake up this isn't funny! WAKE UP!!!!" Hot tears began to run down my cheeks. No….I didn't want to lose him….it was like losing family again. Naruto was just as much, if not more of a brother than Itachi was. He cared for me. The whole reason he was here was for me. "You dobe, you led yourself to your own doom for a worthless cause like me. WAKE UP DAMN YOU!!!!!!"

I choked back a sob as I looked down at the blonde. My tears splashed down on his face, tracing clean paths through the filmy soot that covered his face. My arms wrapped themselves around him as I buried my face in the crook of his neck. "Dobe…..you dobe…." I cried, clutching him to me tightly.

"Sasuke, your elbow's digging into my side."

My breath stopped short as I sat up rapidly.

Slivers of blue shone through Naruto's eyelids that were cracked open slightly.

"Naruto!" I exclaimed in surprise. He was alive. Naruto was alive. I held back the instinctive urge to punch him hard across the face for the worry he had caused me.

Naruto coughed, shifting a little. "What happened?" he asked, his voice dry and cracked.

"I…I don't know," I admitted, still at a loss for words. The relief that was washing over me suddenly was halted by a cold sense of dread washing over my skin. My brother. Where was my brother?

I stumbled up to my feet, looking around frantically. The dust had begun to settle, but Itachi was nowhere in sight.

"NII-SAN!" I screamed out. I had been doing a lot of yelling recently and my throat was raw.

Naruto winced and sat up, rubbing his chest, which was slightly scorched.

"Naruto, I have to find my brother. Don't you dare die!" I ordered.

"I'll do my best," Naruto said dryly, with a crooked smirk.

I nodded and then refocused my attention to finding Itachi. Had the Kyuubi taken over? If I found him, would he even exist besides as a shell for the demon?

I heard a sound and rushed towards it, my heart pounding painfully. I saw the form of my brother sitting up against a tree, which looked severely cracked from the impact. His eyes were shut. I skidded to my knees in front of him. "Nii-san….nii-san, look at me." I tapped the side of his face with my hand. The next moment I cried out in pain as his hand flung up and grabbed my wrist with bone-breaking tightness. Red eyes flashed open and I thought my chest would explode from nerves.

"My head hurts you fool, so stop touching it," came the snide voice of my brother.

"Itachi," I breathed, collapsing against him and holding onto him. It wasn't the Kyuubi staring out at me. Unbelievable amounts of relief flooded my senses. Itachi and Naruto were okay. Everyone was okay. That was all that mattered at the moment. I didn't care about being strong or weak. Importance was no longer linked with power. Importance was embodied into the two defining forces in my life.

Itachi shifted, trying to shrug me off. "Sasuke, I said to get off me."

I held him for a moment longer before complying and letting go of him. I looked at my brother with a smile on my face. He ignored me and instead examined the item in his hand. I recognized it as the device that he had attached to Naruto's chest. It was vibrating and kept flashing red, but at a steadily decreasing rate.

"What is that?" I asked.

"A vessel," Itachi replied, tensing and forcing himself to his feet, refusing any help.

"A vessel?" I asked in confusion. I looked at it and then back at Itachi. My eyes widened as realization of what he had done dawned on me. "You…you had intended to do this all along?"

Itachi ignored me and took a few test steps, holding onto the device tightly. "I'll need to find a place to dispose of this. It wont keep the demon out of the world forever, but it should restrain it long enough that it becomes some else's problem many hundreds of years from now. At that time, I don't really care what becomes of things."

"Wait. Wait a minute. So you were working against the Akatsuki the whole time?"

Itachi stared at me with his red eyes. "You are still quite slow and dense, Sasuke. How anyone could label you as a prodigy, I'll never understand."

I was going to retort, but all that came out was a small laugh.

"You truly don't know me Sasuke. I do things that benefit me. If it happens to be a convenience for someone else, that is merely a by-product." Itachi turned to walk away.

I grabbed his arm that wasn't holding the device to stop him for a moment.

"Nii-san………..thank you," I said with the utmost sincerity. As harsh and cold as Itachi was, and as much as he denied it, I had a feeling that what he had done had been in truth for me.

Itachi grunted and shrugged off my hand. "You could have killed me if you wanted to while I was weak," Itachi said, regarding me. "Doing so would grant you the Mangekyou."

I shook my head as I looked at him. "You and I are different. I don't want the Mangekyou. It's not worth the price, and to me if I'm paying for more than I get then I'm not going to bother. I don't need the Mangekyou to be strong."

Itachi regarded me for a moment, and then his lips upturned into the first real smile I had ever seen him display in his life. It was small, but it was still there. "It seems as if you've finally grown up, brother."

"I'm your avenger. And as such I'll never forgive you for what you've done," I said, looking up at him. "But I'm not going to follow the path of murder and destruction you have taken. I'm carving my own path. We're the last two of our clan; it would be counterproductive of me to try to destroy part of that."

"And that's why you'll always be a fool, Sasuke," Itachi said, though there was no malice or teasing in his voice. He turned once again to leave. "I'm getting rid of this burden now. It's a pain to carry it around for much longer."

"I'll join up with you after," I promised.

"Hmph," Itachi grunted, not turning around. "You assume I want you around." He continued to walk away.

"I'll see you later, then," I said, happiness swelling inside of me. For the first time in my life, I finally seemed to be on my own path, and not something forged for me by someone else. That, I found, was the true power I had been seeking all these years. The power over myself, and my destiny. Nothing else could compare.

I turned to head back to where I left Naruto. The blonde was on his feet, and seemed to be spaced out, his shirt lifted as he looked down at his belly, which was bare from any markings of the seal. He looked up at me as I approached, tears overflowing in his eyes.

"You're free," I said simply, watching him. "We're both free."

Naruto let out a laugh and flung his arms around me. I stumbled back from the sudden contact and was about to resist, but instead found myself relaxing in his hold. Gradually, my arms wrapped around him. We stood there as the blonde cried into my shoulder.

"You're so pathetic, dobe," I said, with a small smile. My eyes watered slightly from emotion. I knew how much this meant for Naruto. His whole life he had been shunned and cursed for the demon inside his body by an ignorant town that couldn't see that he was a savior protecting them from the scourge of the fox.

"Heh," Naruto said, wiping his eyes with his fist as he pulled away. "Not as pathetic as you."

I smirked. "Now without that demon, I can beat you blindfolded with my limbs bound."

"You'd like to think you could," Naruto grinned at me. His face turned serious for a moment. "Sasuke….are you coming home?"

"I have no home," I stated bluntly.

Naruto's face fell, but he looked like he had been expecting that answer.

"I'll be fine dobe. I'm stronger than you after all," I said, giving him a light punch in the arm.

Naruto laughed. "Next time you see me, I'll be Hokage, and then you'll have to refer to me as dobe-sama," he said giving me a playful shove back.

I smiled, a little sad. I was sure I'd see Naruto again, but parting ways suddenly seemed painful. We'd never be apart though. Not really. As rivals, we would always be pushing each other to get better, even when not physically present. When I saw Naruto next, I wanted to remain more than a match for him. Training with Itachi, I was sure to reach that objective.

"Well, I'll see you around," Naruto said, stepping back. "I'll tell Sakura you send her a kiss." He made an exaggerated kissy face before laughing and springing away into the trees and I lunged at him. I grinned and watched as he disappeared in the direction of Konoha.

"That dobe…" I smiled to myself.

I turned on my heel and walked in the direction of the setting sun. Though the sun was setting on the horizon, it was finally rising in my life.

Brother, I've come a long way. I hope that through all this you can be proud of me, and I'll continue to work hard so I'll always stand out in your eyes. Through all the loss, anger, rage and hatred, I've learned to cope, finally opening up to the power I've found through friendship and love. Before I would've called them weak. I guess that just proves how much I've grown. True strength doesn't come with vengeance and mastering hatred. It's the ability to free myself from my past and forgive in order to move ahead on my own chosen path. Despite your actions that hurt me, you really were looking out for me, nii-san, in the strange, sadistic way you go about things. The Akatsuki are sure to realize what happened and come after you, but we'll be ready for them. The two of us together are unstoppable. I'll continue to improve and get stronger, and step out of your shadow into my own light.

I smiled and walked out into the gathering twilight.

- Fin -

* * *

Well, that's all folks! Thank you so much for your support and sticking with this fic! Itachi and Sasuke forever! (heh, with a little bit of SasuNaru on the side 'wink') 


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